I Hate You, Dearest
by slytherinslut13
Summary: The already-done "Fiyeraba arranged marriage" fic, but with a small twist. When they first meet, they hate each other. When they move in together, they hate each other. This is their lives as they grow older, and their hate grows into... um, more hate...
1. Chapter 1

Welcome to my newest multi-chaptered fic. It is not only my newest, but I actually have the next five and a half chapters written! This is a first... normally I write a chapter, post, and hope for the best. So I will be updating about every two weeks or something like that. So, here is my birthday party-favor thing or whatever to all of you! (PS- I didn't get Wicked for my birthday, as much as I begged and pleaded. So I still don't own it.)

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><p><strong><span>One<span>**

The day that they first met was blurry in both their minds. Fiyero's because he had been up most of the night in the carriage with his mother, who had been busily instructing him on how he should behave and what was expected of him. Elphaba because she was simply too young to have much memory of it. But that day was the most important thing that had happened in their then-too-short lives. For they had gotten married that day. Elphaba had arrived, swathed in black and looking every inch a skinny green bean, as well as confused. Fiyero had taken one indignant look at her and turned to his mother.

"You want me to marry _this_ thing?" he had demanded of his mother. At this, Elphaba had whirled on her father; her mood swings evident even at the tender age of five.

"I'm here to get married?" She had yelled in a voice that, had it been raised to a normal volume, would be low and slightly rough.

"Miss Elphaba! Do not shout." Her Nanny scolded her.

"Well of course, why else would I have dragged you halfway across Munchkinland with your abnormality on display for all to see?" her father hissed at her, shaking her arm slightly.

"I thought you were bringing me to the Emerald City." Elphaba said sullenly, having not yet learned that it was best to keep your hopes and dreams to yourself until they came to fruition.

"Bring you to–" Frexspar cut himself off, noticing the impatient look he was getting from the Queen of the Arjiki. "Shall we commence?" he asked, straightening up.

"We shall." The Queen said imperiously.

"Of course." The priest scurried forward, a scroll in his hands. "Now, you, Governor, and you, Miss…" he looked at Nanny for a name.

"She's Miss Elphaba. I'm just Nanny." She said, pursing her lips.

"Well, Nanny," the priest said, brushing over his momentary confusion. "If you and the Governor could sign here, stating that you, with both sound mind and body, give Elphaba Thropp, Third Eminent Thropp Descending, your charge, in marriage to Fiyero Tiggular, Prince of the Arjiki tribe?" the two adults signed where the priest pointed.

"And do you, Queen Khasra Tiggular of the Arjiki, in standing for both yourself and your husband, King Metab Tiggular of the Arjiki, agree to the same?" The Queen took the pen from Frexspar and signed.

"Now, time for the children to sign." The priest said, obviously wanting to leave quickly. Fiyero signed quickly, in agreement with the priest's unspoken plea. He wanted to sleep and eat, although not necessarily in that order. Elphaba, however, was not so compromising.

"I don't want to." She said, glaring at the parchment as if it had done her some great personal wrong.

"You will." Frexspar growled.

"Won't." Elphaba summoned up all her petulance her five-year old body had.

"Miss Elphaba, just sign it. It won't even really mean anything for some time now." Nanny tried to console the young girl.

"Won't." Elphaba repeated, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Look, just sign it, will you?" Fiyero burst out. "Some of us are hungry here."

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Prince." Elphaba sneered to the best of her abilities.

"Elphaba Thropp, you will sign this if it the last thing I get you to do." Frexspar snarled, grabbing her little green hand and forcing the quill into it. He brought the parchment down to her level and guided her hand along the line.

"There." He said, throwing her hand down, causing her to stumble a bit. She glared at him and refused to cry.

"Thank you, both parties." The priest rolled up his signed scroll and scurried away.

"Nanny, feed the little Prince and Elphaba." Frexspar ordered. "Queen Khasra and I will discuss the logistics." With a slight bow, Nanny towed the five-year old girl and nine-year-old boy away as Frexspar and the Queen sat down to talk.

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><p>~Thirteen years later~<p>

"I can't believe you got us kicked out of another school." Elphaba hissed at Fiyero.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Fiyero said, pushing her away from him a bit. "I did not get 'us' kicked out. I got me kicked out. And could you speak quietly. Your goose-speak is annoying my head."

"I will scream all I want, your Princliness." Elphaba whacked his 'poor, tender head'.

"Ouch! No need for that!" He said, opening his eyes enough to glare at her.

"No need? Dammitt, Tiggular, don't you realize that wherever you go, I have to go as well? At least in the same vicinity."

"Yeah, I realize that." He said, closing his eyes again. "What I wouldn't give for that to not be true."

"Shut up. I hate having to agree with you." Elphaba crossed her arms and settled for glaring at the wall of the carriage until they reached Lamay Ko, where the King and Queen lived.

"Fiyero. Elphaba." The Queen said. "Welcome home. Fiyero, your father is waiting for you. Elphaba, there's soup in the kitchen."

"Thank you, your majesty." Elphaba gave a small curtsy. She was, indeed, glad, that she was not subjected to her husband getting yelled at again. As much fun as it was to hear someone else berating him, it grew wearing after a while. After a while, her reluctant husband came down the steps and grabbed a piece of bread and her almost empty bowl.

"Oh, yes, of course you can have my food, O loving husband." Elphaba said sarcastically. He nodded at her, smirking at her ire.

"We're going to a place called Shiz next." He told her. "We can leave anytime in the next month."

"I'll leave tomorrow." Elphaba said, standing up.

"No, you won't."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't want to leave tomorrow, I want to leave at the end of the month." Fiyero said, grabbing her arm.

"We can leave at different times, my Prince." Elphaba glared right back at him and wrenched her arm away.

"Besides, we have to fill the quota for the month."

"Fuck the quota!" Elphaba yelled at him.

"Look, I enjoy it just as much as you do–" Fiyero started, standing up.

"Yeah, right, that's why you ejaculate each time!" Elphaba yelled back.

"We have to make an heir!"

"Not now!"

"Yes now!' Fiyero pinned Elphaba against the wall, panting heavily.

"Fuck you." Elphaba hissed at him, feeling his hands start to crawl up her skirt.

"That's pretty much what I plan on doing." Fiyero growled, sounding almost animalistic.

Elphaba tried to suppress her growing desire, but to no avail. It was like this every month for their single bout of sex that was demanded of them by the wedding contract. They had been married in that respect since she was fourteen and he eighteen. But, without fail, that one time a month would find Elphaba feeling tight and wet in her nether regions, no matter what state Fiyero came onto her in. Most times he was stinking drunk. He had been their first two years, without fail. She had been stinking drunk the second year as well, until the King and Queen ordered their servants to dispose of all the alcohol in Kiamo Ko, the house of the Prince and Princess. It had been a rough month for the both of them.

"There." Elphaba spat at him after he let drop from the wall. "The quota has been filled. Go to your whores for the rest of the month." She straightened her skirts and swept out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

The next morning, she left in a small carriage for Shiz.

"I'll see you in a month or so." Fiyero said, waving her away.

"Yeah. Whatever."

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><p>AN: So, what do you think? Please leave a review telling me!


	2. Chapter 2

**Two**

~One week later~

"Ah, Miss Elphaba." She raised her stiff self from the carriage.

"Madam Morrible. How do you do?" Elphaba gave her hand to the Headshiztress to shake.

"Quite well, thank you. Now, unfortunately, there's been a slight problem with the rooming. You see, your parents requested a private suite for yourself, but we had already given our only girl suite away. Now, you can room with Mr. Tiggular- as I understand it, you two are married?"

"Yes, we are, but I want to finish my education before starting a family. Is there another option other than slee- rooming with my husband?" Elphaba hastily put in, stumbling over her words slightly in her rush to not share a room with Fiyero.

"Well, yes, you can share a room with Miss Galinda Upland, who is currently in the suite. That was what I had been planning, as a single couple living together would merely be a springboard for other, unmarried couples sharing a room." Madam Morrible patted Elphaba's hand in what Elphaba could only assume was a motherly gesture. "Now, if you look to your left, you'll see the historic–" Elphaba tuned the old woman out as she began prattling about how grand Shiz was. Elphaba nodded and smiled politely, but not a single word sank into her skull. She had an entire month without Fiyero. A whole month to be normal- or, at least, as normal as she could be with green skin.

"And here we are." Morrible's voice brought Elphaba out of her musings. "Here's your key, and your roommate should be back in an hour or so- classes are finishing up for the day." Elphaba took the large key from Morrible's hand, thanking her softly.

"Oh, no problem, dear." Madam fluttered as she left. Elphaba shut the door quickly, lest she come back. When she turned around, she nearly dropped her bags. There was only one word for it- pink. There were pink curtains, pink wallpaper, pink decorations, pink bedspreads, pink clothes on the floor… Elphaba gagged a bit.

She began pulling her dresses and books out of her bags, putting a bit of her black touch in the room. She had just finished putting her toiletries away when she heard the door opening.

"Miss Galinda Upland, I assume?" Elphaba said, blandly eyeing the other girl. Like the room had suggested, the girl was dressed in pink. She had big blue eyes and perfectly coiffed blonde hair. In short, she was the exact opposite of Elphaba.

"Yes… who the hell are you, and what are you doing in my room?" The blonde crossed to her pink bed and smoothed the pristine covers down.

"I'm Elphaba Tiggular, your new roommate." Elphaba pursed her lips. She had not expected a good reaction, but this wasn't too horrible… maybe the other girl was in shock?

"No you're not. I have a private suite." Galinda laughed a little, and Elphaba had to keep from wincing. It was a girly laugh- a very girly laugh.

"Yeah, that's what I was told, too." Elphaba muttered. "There's nothing I can do about it, so we'll just have to deal." She told her roommate bluntly, turning back to her bed.

"No, I don't. I refuse to share a room with a… with a… an artichoke!" Galinda cried, glaring at her.

"Well, I don't exactly want to share with a confectionary, either." Elphaba glared right back.

"Madam Morrible will listen to me! I am Galinda Upland of the Upper Uplands!" Galinda announced dramatically.

"I'm Princess Elphaba Tiggular of the Arjiki. Big fucking whoop." Elphaba rolled her eyes. With a small cry of anger, the blond stormed out of her room, presumably to vent to one of her friends.

"Well, that went well." Elphaba muttered to herself, tossing her now-empty bags under her bed. She cast a contemptuous glance at the pink side of the room before curling up to go to sleep.

When she woke up early the next morning, she found Miss Galinda Upland sprawled most unattractively on her bed. Obviously, her attempts to get her roommate changed had failed.

For a month, Elphaba ignored the pink confectionary and her troops of icing, who more commonly know as Galinda Upland- of the Upper Uplands, as she constantly reminded… well, everyone- and her posse. For a month, Elphaba reveled in the beautiful sense of aloneness that she had. And then Fiyero had shown up. And nearly driven her over.

"Wait, milady!" Avaric had cried softly, knowing even as he protested Elphaba waking Fiyero that it was pointless.

"Wake up, you hung-over piece of shit." Elphaba growled deep in her throat, sounding for a moment like an angry animal. Eh jerked awake at her voice, then glared when he found the source.

"Hello to you, too, my lovely Princess." He muttered sarcastically.

"Your cart nearly knocked me over, and you're sleeping?" She rolled her eyes at him, not for the first time.

He ignored her in favor of the car driver. "Well, see you soon Avaric. I surely won't last any longer here than at any of the other schools." They did a silly handshake thing and Avaric wheeled his cart away.

"We sure as hell had better stay here." Elphaba glared at him again. "And did you even notice that you nearly hit me?"

"Well, maybe Avaric saw green and thought it meant go. Besides, he missed… unfortunately." He had muttered the last word, but Elphaba still heard it. She shot him one last dirty glance and stalked off, not wanting to stay in his presence any longer then she absolutely had to.

She tried to pretend that it didn't hurt her when the Cupcake burst into their room with her icing pack and started coordinating her outfit for her date tonight. Elphaba stuck her nose more firmly in her book and tried to ignore their squeals. Some, however, pierced even her book's thick cover.

"I can't believe that scandalacious prince asked you to the dance!" One of them said. Elphaba rolled her eyes before registering what had actually been said. Prince? Dance? Oh, no… not on the first fucking night…

"I know! He's so…" Galinda sighed girlishly. "Don't you just adore his bluified eyes! And his hair is so perfect!" Elphaba's eye twitched.  
><em>I swear to Lurline, if Fiyero set up an illegal dance again…<em> She thought, not reading anymore.

"And he's foreign! He's a Winkie prince! That means he's going to be king!" Another bit of frosting clapped her hands together and, from the sounds of the squeaking floorboards, started bouncing.

"Oh, sweet Oz." Elphaba finally threw down her book. "It's the Vinkus for Lurline's sake, and he's a shit prince that's going to be a shit ruler. Get over yourselves." She didn't stay to hear their childish squeals caused by her language. She locked herself in the bathroom and stuffed all the cracks in the door with cloth to keep sound from coming through, then tore them out to throw the pink monstrosity that was a make-up bag out. She closed the door with a snap again and replaced the clothes, grabbing her spare book from behind the toilet. She had made it a habit to stash one there since she had married Fiyero and realized that the bathroom was the only place she would get any privacy. Some hours later, she crawled to her bed, her eyes itching from reading and her body sore from staying in one position for too long. She peered at the clock and realized two things. One; that it was nearing three o'clock and two; that her roommate was not back.

_Well, I'm certain that Prince Fiyero managed to find a bed for her. _She even sounded sarcastic in her own head. She burrowed under her covers and slept, waking breifly when a disheveled and drunk Galinda let herself in at six.

The next morning, she headed to the boy's dorms around nine, asking a random boy on the way which room was Fiyero's.

_He would be on the top floor. _Elphaba thought mutinously. _He probably asked for it so I would have to do this at least once a month._

She knocked harshly on his door and was not surprised when he opened clad only in his pants and clutching a bottle of a most likely illegal substance.

"What do you want?"

"Sweet Oz, Fiyero, I realize you have your whores, but do you have to fuck my roommate?" She got to the point quickly.

"Well, hey, she was willing, and you weren't." he responded lazily.

"You weren't either." Elphaba pulled the flask from his hand and took a sniff. "And grass whiskey? At nine?'

"A woman's a woman." He shrugged, looking at her black-clad body lustily. Elphaba drained the flask in one long guzzle and threw it across the hall, where it shattered on impact with the wall. She knew where this would end up, and she didn't want to be in her entirely right mind for it. "You know," he continued, pulling her into his room as if nothing had happened. "If you were to wear something tighter, you could almost be sexy." He tugged at the bodice on her dress. "I think I'm going to make you wear that all the time. Tight dresses." He concluded.

Elphaba slapped him. "Like fuck you're going to tell me what to wear."

"No, but I can decide what you don't wear and when." He pulled on the zipper of her dress and slipped it off her, leaving her in her underwear. He traced a random line on her stomach.

"Fuck you." She said, not for the first time- nor last time, she would wager- as she fought to keep her voice steady, not betraying the effect he had on her.

"You have a potty mouth. Lemme fix that." His mouth crashed down on hers forcefully, and she responded in kind, biting hard enough to leave bruises. She didn't leave his room until nearly noon.

"I wish we could stockpile these." She said idly as she was wiggling her way into her dress and bra, the panties far too ripped to be of any real use. "Then we could just go at it for a day and not have to do anything for a year."

Fiyero snorted. "I hate when you do something reasonable like that." He complained.

Elphaba rolled her eyes and flicked him off when he turned his back.

"By the way, Mother sent you a hat for your birthday." He tossed a lump of black at her. She caught it and tucked it into her belt loop.

"Thanks ever so much." She said sarcastically.

"Fuck you in a month." He replied cheerfully. She flicked him off once more and left.

"Where have you been all morning?" The Cupcake's voice greeted her as she walked through the door. "Up to no good, I don't doubt."

"I was pillaging small towns and raping their women and children." Elphaba said contemptuously. Galinda sniffed and turned away.

"Like you can talk. You got in a six, your skirts all rumpled." Elphaba nodded at the laundry basket, where one strap of the pink Thing could be seen. Should she be bothered that she slept with Fiyero mere hours after Galinda did?

Galinda blushed. "The dance went late."

"Yeah. Sure. I'll bet Fiyero–" Elphaba sneered.

Galinda gasped again. "How do you know my Fifi?"

"_Your Fifi_?" Elphaba asked, incredulous. She couldn't tell which was worse- the name, or the possessive. "You've got to be kidding me."

"How do you know him? I'll bet that you tried to seduce my Fifi. But you won't. He's loyal to me, and only me."

"Do you know how many girls he's told that to? Please. You're nothing to him." Elphaba scoffed.

"Oh, and you would know this, how?" Galinda asked with a toss-toss of her hair.

"Hello? Elphaba _Tiggular._ Duh." Elphaba left the room again. This girl really was too much for her. She spent the rest of the day in the library, contemplating the name 'Fifi'. Honestly, what did Galinda think he was, a dog?

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><p>AN: Like it? Tell me! Have some Happy Holidays!


	3. Chapter 3

**Three**

Devoting the entirety of her time to studies seemed like a good plan for Elphaba. She spent the next months ignoring almost everything, including herself, but excluding her classes. Her favorite, by far, was Life Sciences with Doctor Dillamond, an older Goat. He was actually very smart, despite the pressure from 'higher up', as he put it (Elphaba never knew who he was talking about), for him to leave his job. She would often spend her lunch period with him, just discussing the latest news from the City. Until the day he got taken away. And then they brought that poor lion cub in. She had thrown a fit, and magic seeped out of her hands, leaving everyone in a state of mindless panic, no control over their limbs. She ran until she had no clue where she was and was grasping a stitch in her side. She put the cub down and vomited her meager breakfast into the bushes.

"Don't tell anyone about that." She mumbled to the cub, her hands shaking a bit. "Wouldn't do to have them thinking I was human or anything." She continued bitterly.

"Nah, that wouldn't work out very well. Imagine, the green bean, getting compassion or something." Elphaba whirled around to find Fiyero leaning casually against the tree.

"How long have you been there?"

"Long enough to know that you probably want some water or something to clean out your mouth." He shrugged. "Unfortunately for you, I don't have any on me."

"Even if you did have any, would you give any to me?" Elphaba asked, unlatching the hook on the cage.

"Probably." Fiyero shrugged.

"Why? Come on out, you, it's okay." Elphaba tried to coax the lion cub out of the cage, but it shrank back against the bars.

"Because I know how much it sucks to throw up?" Fiyero phrased his answer as a question.

Elphaba gave up on the cub and stood, brushing leaves off her knees. "No, why are you here?"

"I mean, I saw my wife run by and thought that Mom and Dad might be a bit mad if I lost her." He shrugged again, avoiding her eyes.

"That's a shit lie, and we both know it." Elphaba scoffed.

"Fine, whatever." He set off, leaving her speechless for once. A moment later, he came back, looking very bad-tempered, but ignored her soft cry of 'Fiyero' as he passed by.

That day haunted Elphaba, for more than one reason. She just had so many questions. For one, where was Doctor Dillamond? She refused to believe that he had been found guilty of a crime. For one, nobody said exactly what his crime was, and for another, Elphaba _knew_ him. He wouldn't- no, he couldn't do any sort of crime… not knowingly, at least. For another, why in Oz had Fiyero followed her? Had he thought that after four years of living together he could lie to her? Or, after four years of marriage, had he actually started to _like_ her? Elphaba immediately dismissed this second thought as entirely implausible, but it stayed in the back of her head, a niggling thought that kept her up most nights.

Elphaba finally gave up on studying, her head too full of questions that she didn't entirely want to answer. It was a week after the lion cub incident, and she still hadn't been able to shake these thoughts. She slammed her book shut and stalked out of the library, ignoring the glares of the librarians as she made her way to .her dorm.

"Oh, for the love of–" She turned around immediately after opening the door, allowing Fiyero time to pull up his trousers.

"I'll just go then." He said, trying to shuffle past her, leaving Galinda on the bed, flushed with arousal and embarrassment.

"No, you won't." She grabbed his arm and pulled him across the hall to a closet, ignoring Galinda's protests.

"Oz, Fiyero, you were on my fucking bed." Elphaba said, crossing her arms over her chest in the dark.

"Galinda said she didn't want to mess her bed up." Fiyero mumbled.

"Oh, so you decided to fuck your girlfriend on your wife's bed." Elphaba glared even harder.

"No… I mean, well, I guess." Fiyero shrugged uneasily, feeling the beginning pricks of guilt.

"Do you ever think with something that isn't your dick?"

"Yes."

"Really?"

"Yes."

"So what are you thinking now? And remember, I can tell when you're lying."

"I am undressing–" Fiyero was cut off with a slap.

"Oz, Fiyero. I don't give a shit when you have your whores, but keep them in the whore house from now on." She remembered a similar conversation from his first day here vaguely.

"You have no say in who or where I can fuck." Fiyero said, clutching his cheek. For such a small woman, she was very strong. She made to slap him again, but he caught her hand.

"Damn it, Fiyero let me go." She tried to shake her way free, but he was strong. He lowered his head for a kiss, bruising her lips. She brought her knee up roughly and jerked free when he doubled over.

"Fuck you, dearest." She hissed, jerking the door open and letting him drop to the floor.

"What did you do to him?" Galinda squealed, looking at her boyfriend.

"Leave me the fuck alone!" Elphaba pushed past her (now-clothed) roommate and locked the door to the bathroom. Galinda stared at the door; had those been tears on the artichoke's cheeks? Galinda took a glance back at Fiyero, then at the bathroom door.

"Are you okay, Fiyero? What did she do to you?" She rushed over to her boyfriend.

"I kneed him in the fucking balls!" Elphaba shouted out from behind the door. If Galinda didn't know better, she'd say that Elphaba sounded like she was crying.

"You little bitch!" Fiyero shouted back. "I swear I will get you back!"

"Yeah, right after you stop sleeping with everyone you set eyes on!" yelled, stalking back in forth in the bathroom.

"Liar!" Fiyero growled in Elphaba's general direction.

"Asswipe!" Elphaba nearly took the door off its hinges so she could yell at him easier.

"Slut!"

"Oh, you're calling me a slut?" Elphaba advanced on him. Galinda moved into a corner, sensing that this was about to get very ugly. She had never seen two siblings hate each other more than these two. "That's rich, coming from you."

"Yeah, because you're such an innocent little virgin."

"No thanks to you." They were almost nose-to-nose now.

"You little–" Fiyero made a sudden move, like he was going to slap her, but pulled back at the last second. They glared at each other for one more minute before Fiyero turned away.

"Galinda, I'll see you later." He told his now-silently-sobbing girlfriend.

"Why do you have to ruin everything?" Galinda yelled at Elphaba.

"Me? You're the home-wrecking whore here!" Elphaba yelled back.

"Home-wrecking? You two are already a demolished house!" Galinda glared at her roommate. She had never been so mad in her entire life. Elphaba threw a hairbrush at Galinda, who barely dodged it. It hit the wall behind her, leaving a sizable dent. Galinda gaped at Elphaba, who was throwing off small sparks of electricity.

"Never talk to me again." And with that, Elphaba gathered up a pillow and a dress and left the room.

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><p>AN: Romance? No romance? Amusement parks could make roller coasters based off of this couple's emotions! PS- I have been so excited to update this story! I plan on updating Saturdays every other week, so updates should be more regular from now on.


	4. Chapter 4

Four

She lived mainly in the library for the next few weeks, curling up in a chair for sleep and only returning to her real room for the bathroom, a book, or a new change of clothes. Eventually, the librarians made her go back once the library closed, and Elphaba reluctantly dragged her weary body to her room. She didn't even bother to put her pajamas on, and let her heavy dress fall to the floor. She cast a contemptuous look at her bed and brought her bedding to the bathtub, locking the door behind her. She woke up many hours later to the sound of Galinda pounding at the door.

"I really have to pee, you green git!" She screamed. Elphaba groaned and rolled out of the tub to open the door.

"You're going to have to leave to let me do my business." Galinda glared at her briefly. Elphaba uncoiled from her ball and walked out of the bathroom, ignoring how Galinda's eyes darted down her body to her stomach. She closed the door behind her and waited until she heard the sink running to let herself back in to get her bedding.

"Wait." She heard Galinda's voice behind her.

"What do you want?" Elphaba sighed, dumping her bedding back where it belonged.

"You've gained weight." Galinda said.

"Damn straight." Elphaba rolled her eyes.

"But you don't eat."

Elphaba froze a bit. "How do you know?"

"You just told me." Galinda moved closer to Elphaba, who flinched at her mistake.

"I know what this means, right?"

"Yes, I realize what I fucking am, Miss Galinda. I've had experience." Elphaba snapped at her roommate finally, whirling around.

"You have a kid?" Galinda gasped, not even reprimanding Elphaba for her language.

"No." Elphaba said coldly.

"Then you–" Galinda cut herself off. "Oh, I'm so sorry."

"I'm not."

"That's horrible!"

"I was fifteen. I had never even had my monthlies; I was scared, alone, and Oz, Galinda, I didn't want that child." Elphaba sat down on her bed. It felt so good to be able to tell someone, after all this time, even if it was someone she didn't get along with. She could blame her hormones easily. "I had just figured out that I was expecting when… Galinda, I had been drinking. Almost constantly. When I found out, I grabbed five bottles and locked myself in my room. I drank all of them. Whenever I felt myself reaching a point of not being blacked out, I drank more. And every time I would run out of booze, I would send for more. I didn't move for about three days. On the third day, I began having really bad cramps. At some point in all that, I killed the thing inside me. I ran into the bathroom and sat in the tub until all this blood came pouring out of me. I puked on it. Fuck, Galinda, I _puked_ on my own child. And I ran the bath until it was all gone. Do you know what I did then? Drank for nearly two more days, hoping that the liquor would kill me. Fiyero finally cut me off, ordered the servants to not bring me any more. Nobody ever knew there had been a child inside my womb for nearly two months."

"Who was the father?"

"My husband."

"Who's your husband?"

"It doesn't matter." Elphaba shrugged carelessly.

"Of course it does!" Galinda looked scandalized.

Elphaba shook her head. "Galinda, does it _sound _like I love my husband? I was made to sign a contract when I was five, and I've been living with him for four years. We have to have sex once a month. It's not exactly something I want to be spread."

"That's horrible! I can't believe your father made you do that!" Galinda slapped a hand to her mouth.

"Tell me about it." Elphaba muttered, not meanly. There was a small silence until Galinda spoke again.

"But… you've surely… you know, done IT since then… how'd you not get pregnant again?"

"We would normally… schedule the time to fill the monthly quota, and I would always calculate to make sure that it fell on a date that I couldn't get pregnant. I also… I went into this city near where we lived and wandered around it, looking for the whores, the prostitutes. I… I asked them how they kept themselves from getting pregnant, and they gave me the name of a store that sold a drug for that purpose, pretty cheap. It tastes horrible, but it's come in handy a few times when I wasn't expecting anything. But, the one time it wasn't planned… I didn't have any on me, and I didn't know where to get any. It has to be taken within a day of the act, so here I am." Elphaba spread her arms wide as if to say 'no big deal', and she smiled wryly. She shrugged on a dress and made to leave.

"Where are you going?" Galinda demanded.

"Gotta tell Fiyero." Elphaba called over her shoulder.

"Won't he be mad? He's your brother; do you think he'll beat your husband up?" Galinda asked, her eyes going a bit starry at the thought of Fiyero being a knight in shining armor. Elphaba let out a loud cackle before closing the door. After making her way to Fiyero's dorm house, she was told that he was last seen in the cafeteria, so she went there, and from there, his next classroom to wait for him. He didn't show up to that, so she went back to his dorm and was told that he had just gotten in.

"Finally." She said, beginning to mount the stairs. She had gone up three of the five flights when she ran into Fiyero.

"Princess." He greeted her sarcastically.

"Princie-pie." She retorted, knowing how much he hated that name.

"What do you want?"

"We need to talk."

"What, are you leaving me?" He joked.

"I wish. No, this is bad news."

His face crinkled with worry. "What? Did Father die and leave me the throne?"

"No, it does not involve your father. Let's go to your room." She nearly had to drag him up the stairs, as he 'had plans with some of the guys'. Once in his room, however, he pulled out a flask of grass whiskey and offered it to her. She grabbed it and poured it down the sink.

"What the hell?" He asked, bemused. She had never poured out alcohol before.

"If I have to stay sober for the next year or so, so do you." She said, facing him again.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"I'm pregnant." Elphaba's face twisted in a grimace.

"You're shitting me." Fiyero sat down heavily.

"I wish." Elphaba repeated. "The good news is, we don't have to have sex until this thing is born. And, if it's a boy, we can be done forever."

"And, the bad news?"

Elphaba looked at him, one eyebrow raised. "We're going to be parents in May?"

"Right. What if it's a girl?" Fiyero ran a hand through his hair.

"Then we'd better make like rabbits again." Elphaba said. "I'm going to send a letter to your parents. Maybe my family, too."

"Wait." He said, standing. "Does Galinda–" he let his question hang.

"She still thinks we're siblings, and is probably currently fantasizing about you running off to chivalrously beat up my alleged lover. Even though I told her I was married. How the hell do you stand her stupidity?" Elphaba rolled her eyes.

"She's not all that bad." Fiyero felt like he had to defend her.

"Oh, right, I forgot. You have the same amount of brains, _Fifi_." With that one last scathing comment, she swept out of his rooms, leaving him with his thoughts.

* * *

><p>AN: Oh la la! You probably saw that one coming... but if not, surprise!


	5. Chapter 5

Five

Elphaba decided very quickly that she didn't like being pregnant. There seemed to be no end to the 'watermelon' jokes, for one, and for another, people stared. It wasn't unusual for her, but now, instead of horrified, her peers looked at her like she had committed the worst wrong of all. And then there were the little old ladies who ignored her green skin and asked if they could touch her baby bump. A single look from her was normally all it took. People finally started believing her claims of marriage when her mother-in-law (who they all believed to be her biological mother) arrived in a carriage and, instead of yelling at Elphaba, congratulated her. To Elphaba's horror, however, Khasra talked to Elphaba for a good hour about what she could expect come the time of birth. From what Elphaba understood, it was painful- very painful.

"Do not expect to have anything to dull the pain. Our people believe that any sort of drugs in the birthing process interferes with the child's and mother's bond." Khasra patted Elphaba's hand. Elphaba stared at her, a sort of dull disbelief clouding her mind. No painkillers? Then again, when had the Arjiki ever tried to make her life easier?

Elphaba knew the moment she was in labor. She didn't do anything about it, but she knew. She was showering when the first contraction hit. It was brief, fluttering, but definite. Wrinkling her nose, she turned off the shower and dried herself off, then pulled on her clothes and made her way to Life Sciences for their final. She flew through the test, not even bothering to double-check her answers. As she left the lecture hall early, yet another pain hit her. She grabbed the back of the nearest chair to her and waited until it passed- only for a few seconds, but enough time to make people look at her.

"Elphaba?" It was the first time she could ever remember hearing Fiyero call her by her given name.

"I'm fine." She growled at him. "Stay here." She waddled her way out of the hall and made her way to the Infirmary, which, no thanks to the architect, was on the other side of campus. Elphaba's general mood was not helped by the blatant stares she was getting. Only her sense of decorum instilled in her by her mother-in-law stopped her from shouting at them angrily. Finally, she reached the Infirmary. It seemed that as soon as she took one step in there, the maunts in charge of running it went into a frenzy of activity.

"How long are the contractions?"

"How far apart are they?"

"When did they start?"

"How far is she dilated?"

"Has your water broken yet?"

The questions were fired at her, one after another, not giving her a chance to speak. Elphaba's mouth tightened in anger, her nostrils flaring a bit.

"Shut. Up." She said, her voice clipped and cold. The maunts all stopped their fluttering and waited for her to continue.

"I started contracting this morning, went to class for a test, then came here. In that three-hour period, I had about twenty-five contractions. I wasn't counting, really. My water has not broken. If it had, I would probably be in a bit more pain, or my skirts would be wet, don't you think? I came here to simply tell you that I had begun. I have another class in about an hour that I _will_ go to. Rest assured, however, that I will return here immediately should my contractions increase in strength or time significantly. I will now go eat lunch and return to my classes." Her tone of voice left no room for argument. As she exited the room, she thought she heard one maunt say,

"Well, she'll be the task maker, that's for sure." She glared at the wall, clenching her jaw. Who said she had to be in this thing's life? She could just hire a wet nurse and send it off to Kiamo Ko. Besides, it was just a thing that allowed her to be left alone for a good five months at the very least. She turned her glare towards her protruding stomach.

"You'd better be a boy, for all the trouble you've given me." She grumbled, finally arriving at her class.

"Ah, Miss Elphaba, how nice of you to show up." Professor Angta, the Mathematics teacher, greeted her. Elphaba glowered even harder and slid into a desk near the back. She had only been a few minutes late. She checked her watch. Or ten. How she hated today.

By the end of that class, she was biting her tongue to stifle her groans.

"Damnnit." She breathed, closing her notes with a small _whoof_. The sound was entirely unsatisfying to her, and se glared at them for a bit before sighing and standing hoping against all hopes that at least something would go her way this day, and Angta wouldn't notice her. As she knew, though, the professor did see her and raised one eyebrow. Elphaba made a jerky motion with her head that didn't really answer the question that Angta was asking, but at least let her knew that Elphaba had understood. Nearly ten minutes later, Elphaba arrived in the Infirmary for the second time that day. She found Fiyero and Galinda there, sitting in two chairs and holding hands.

"How sickeningly sweet. Why are you two here?" Elphaba announced her presence.

"Well, Fiyero told me you left Life Sciences early, and I assumed that you had come here, so I brought Fiyero and here we are!" Galinda chirped. "How are you feeling?"

"About nine months and a few days pregnant." Elphaba stared at Fiyero, who offered her a weak smile.

"Ah, Elphaba." Elphaba froze, knowing that voice.

"By the way, Father's here." Fiyero said. Elphaba turned around and saw her father-in-law, King Metab, standing about ten feet away.

"My lord." She curtsied to the best of her abilities.

"None of that formalness, not here on the brink of the next Prince's birth." Metab waved her curtsey away, but did not come any closer.

"Why are you here, my Lord?" Elphaba asked politely.

"I was on business in the Emerald City and had a day to spare. So, I thought I'd pop in to see my son, and was told that you were in labor!" He sounded more jovial than Elphaba had ever heard him.

"How kind of you." Elphaba murmured, risking a glance at Galinda and Fiyero's still joined hands. Metab noticed her gaze, and nodded once.

"My lord." A maunt came in and curtsied breifly. "We must prepare the lady."

Elphaba let herself be led into the birthing room, not wanting to stay in the tension-filled air any longer than absolutely necessary. As the door was closing, she heard Metab ask to be introduced to Galinda.

Elphaba took a deep breath as she felt the maunts hands working on the back of her dress, then the cotton sliding off her shoulders. Shivering as the chilly air hit her, Elphaba accepted the gown-thing that the maunts handed her. They ushered her over to the restroom so she could remove her underclothes and slip on the gown. Before she could even fully close the bathroom door, Metab strode in, his face thunderous.

She curtsied to the best of her abilities, dropping the thin gown in the process.

"Elphaba." He ignored her state of undress. "Were you aware that Fiyero was dating that… that…" he paused, looking for the correct word.

"Cupcake?" Elphaba supplied wickedly. Metab glanced at her in wry amusement and nodded. "I did know, yes."

"Does she know that he is married? To you?"

"I pretty sure that she doesn't." Elphaba responded truthfully.

"And is there any way that she could also be carrying a Vinkun heir?" Metab asked, pursing his lips and glancing at her stomach.

Elphaba paused. Should she tell him the truth? That would bring his wrath down on the pair… but as much as she enjoyed seeing Fiyero taking the burnt of his parent's anger, Galinda was the closest thing to a friend that Elphaba had. She had never teased Elphaba during the course of her pregnancy, had never asked to touch her extended stomach. Elphaba had even heard her telling her friends to not laugh about it. And though the green mother-to-be had little experience with friendships, she was relatively sure that being married to your friend's boyfriend would not help.

"Not that I am aware of." Elphaba said finally, meeting Metab's eyes. He nodded again and left.

It was a hard labor. She had always been tall and thin, with small breasts and waist, but she had never hated it until now. Her hips were narrow, making it significantly more painful to bring a child out of her womb and into the world. Galinda had come and gone several times, until she declared that the screaming was too much and went to their room to sleep. Elphaba hated her like never before in that moment. What did Galinda know of childbirth? With every contraction, Elphaba would lean forward in pain and scream, surely loud enough to keep the three other patients in the Infirmary wide awake. Now, after fourteen hours, she had screamed herself hoarse, and the baby was finally coming out. Those final minutes were the hardest thing Elphaba had ever done, physically at least. She had been through the rough equivalent of triplets in emotional pain when she had had to leave Nessarose for the Vinkus, but this… this was a whole new level entirely.

Finally, over the sounds of her own mental screams, Elphaba heard the lusty cry of a newborn.

"Oh, it's beautiful." A maunt cooed.

"What color?" Elphaba rasped out as the maunt tied off the umbilical cord and cut it.

"She's a beautiful tan, just like her papa." Another maunt said.

"She?" Elphaba collapsed back onto the pile of pillows, disappointed beyond belief. All that pain, all that sleep and testing missed, for a _girl_? How was that fair in any way. Elphaba tensed up as she felt another contraction.

"Not another one?" She asked, half hopeful that she had a boy in there somewhere, half scared at having to go through that again.

"Not to fret, dear. It's just the afterbirth making its way out." A few seconds later, a mess of blood and fluid rushed out of her. She felt something being pressed into her arms, and she found herself looking at the tiny, rather ugly, face of her daughter. She heard Metab and Fiyero come in quietly, and her face filled with shame. It was not a son, not an heir.

"How is my grandson?" Metab asked, a wide smile across his face.

"Granddaughter." Elphaba replied miserably. "It's a girl… I'm sorry."

The effect was instantaneous- the grin fell from Metab's face, and he whirled around, his overcoat billowing out behind him as he left. Elphaba and Fiyero sat in silence for a bit, uncomfortably aware of what had happened, and what needed to happen now.

"May I see her?" Fiyero asked finally. Elphaba passed him the baby, who seemed to be between sleep and hunger, a trait that Elphaba shared at that moment.

"She's beautiful." Fiyero said, holding the baby more gently then Elphaba could've ever imagined.

Elphaba snorted. "Don't lie; she looks like a monkey."

"Well, she was just sitting in fluids for nine months, she's bound to look a little wrinkly." Fiyero defended his daughter. "What's her name?"

"I had been thinking ''Liir', but that' a boy's name." Elphaba admitted. "I suppose Illyria would work."

"Illyria." Fiyero mulled the name over for a second. "It's good; sounds noble."

"And no stupid nicknames." Elphaba added her stipulation before the seed could even sprout in her husband's head. They both feel quiet again.

"You know, I think this is the longest we've ever gone without arguing." Elphaba broke the silence presently.

"Do you want me to insult you?" Fiyero asked, chuckling a bit.

"Honestly, no, but if you feel the need, go for it." Elphaba smiled slightly.

"For once, no thanks." Fiyero admitted. They fell back into their easy silence and watched their daughter sleep.

* * *

><p>AN: Woah! They're getting along? What is this madness?


	6. Chapter 6

Six

"Fiyero, I swear, if you don't stop sucking face with Galinda in the next five seconds, I will glue your lips shut." Elphaba said, pursing her lips and facing forward in the small carriage. Illyria, now three weeks old, gurgled.

Elphaba leaned forward and whispered in her daughter's ear. "Oz, I'm glad for your sake that stupidity isn't hereditary." She felt confident that she had done reasonably well in her exams, although she had had to take them in several one-hour segments so she could care for her child without any suspicion of cheating cast upon her. Fiyero, on the other hand, had seemed to be more interested in the end-of-year part than the exam part. Galinda had been by his side throughout, and Elphaba very much doubted that either of them had passed their exams.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming!" Fiyero pressed one last kiss to Galinda's lips and jumped into the carriage.

"Let's go." He ordered the driver.

"Bye- bye Fifi! Goodbye Elphaba!" Galinda waved them off with her handkerchief. Elphaba, sitting opposite Fiyero, raised an eyebrow.

"What?" He asked, not meeting her eye.

"You're still letting her call you 'Fifi'?" She said, half amused and half annoyed.

"I tried asking her to not call me that, but she's like a little pit bull with nicknames. Once she figures one out, she will not stop using it. Unless she's angry at you." Fiyero shrugged. From this, Elphaba gathered that he had learned from personal experience, and hated the nickname.

"You could just get her mad at you permanently." Elphaba suggested quietly.

"How?" Fiyero rolled his eyes at her.

"By telling her the truth." Elphaba said, trying to keep the smallest note of derision of out her voice.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because."

"Great excuse, my prince." Elphaba easily fell back into her normal sarcastic tone.

"Just leave it."

"You're going to break her heart when she realizes you can't marry her." Elphaba pointed out fairly.

"Yeah, so?"

"And when you have to tell her that she can't have any kids." Elphaba continued.

"Yeah. Whatever."

"Fiyero, are you even listening?" Elphaba nearly yelled.

He slammed his fist against the side of the carriage, making it rock and Elphaba wince. "Yes, I am listening Elphaba. I just don't want to break her heart right now. Drop it." She didn't continue to flame his anger, choosing instead to quiet Illyria, who had woken with a cry at the loud voices.

They arrived at Kiamo Ko a few days later, dusty and irritable. At the gates, to their surprise, stood Khasra.

"I'm here only to say welcome back to the both of you, and also that a new maid has been hired to help with the baby. You may not, however, hand the entirety of the responsibility to her. She shall only be here for this summer; do not expect her for your next child." She stayed through till dinner, but said nothing else of consequence. Their new help was Flame, an older Quadling woman who had many years of experience with children under her belt. Although she spoke in fragmented sentences that left Elphaba's eye twitching, she did manage to show Elphaba the ropes that the new mother had yet to grasp… such as cleaning the child after it soiled itself without getting shit everywhere and in less then ten minutes.

Elphaba was sure that she would be getting things done much faster if Fiyero was actually there.

"If you could just play with Illyria for an hour or two so I can get some sleep, for once, this whole thing would work so much better!" Elphaba railed at him one morning as he was shrugging on his coat, preparing to go into town for the twenty-third day in a row. He, predictably, ignored her and left the castle.

"Dammit, Fiyero." Elphaba whispered as the baby began to cry yet again.

Elphaba groaned and rolled over, wishing she could ignore the child's wails. However, Flame, apparently on Khasra's orders, had been withdrawing her help now that there were only three weeks left until Elphaba went back to school- with the child and Fiyero.

"I'm coming, I'm coming." Elphaba had just put her feet to the unreasonably cold floor when the crying stopped. Elphaba paused for a moment before rushing into the nursery. What she found there surprised her.

Fiyero had picked up Illyria and was shushing her gently.

"Hush, now, baby." He whispered, not seeing Elphaba. "Let's let your mother sleep tonight."

"How are you so natural at this?" Elphaba asked, making her presence known. Fiyero looked up at her, gently so that he wouldn't disturb the now-quiet child.

"I had a younger sister; six years my junior, and I vaguely remember taking care of her." Fiyero said quietly, rocking Illyria gently in is arms. She stared up at him.

"What?" Elphaba had never heard of a sister before then, had never seen her.

"Yes, I know, nobody talks about her." Fiyero said, dragging a hand down his face and putting Illyria down in he crib.

"Why not?" Elphaba asked gently, confused.

"Mother and Father had just signed the contract for her marriage." Fiyero paused, and Elphaba hesitated before speaking.

"Whom is she married to?"

"Nobody. She… she was supposed to marry the King of the Scrow tribe."

"Supposed to?"

"She committed suicide the night before her marriage. I found Kali in her room, in her wedding dress, hanging from her veil. The message couldn't have been clearer." Fiyero turned away from Elphaba.

"Oh, Fiyero." Elphaba felt more for Fiyero in this moment that she had in almost five ears of marriage. "I'm sorry."

"She's why I started my drinking and partying." Fiyero continued. Elphaba sensed that he had never told anyone any of this.

"So you could forget." She placed her hand on his shoulder, and, for once, he didn't shrug it off. Not that she had purposefully touched him many times before, but still. He nodded silently, a broken brother. They remained that way for many moments.

"I don't even know why Mother and Father had her. They already had an heir, why did they need her?" Fiyero ran a hand through his hair.

Elphaba didn't have an answer for that.

"I tried to kill myself." She admitted in a whisper. "During the first year."

Fiyero stiffened against her. "Was I that bad?"

"No…" Elphaba lied. "Well, yes, but it wasn't you… not entirely."

"What do you mean?"

Elphaba sighed. It was a night of secrets that she wasn't sure she was ready for. But she had started it, and would finish it. She took a deep breath before starting. "Lyr wasn't my first pregnancy."

Fiyero spun around to face her. "What?"

"I got pregnant when I was fifteen. I never told anyone." She said quietly, knowing that her eyes were tearing up against her will. She furiously blinked back the tears threatening to escape, but new ones quickly replaced them.

"When did you miscarry it?"

"When I disappeared into my room for nearly a week."

"You mean when you almost emptied our entire liquor supply by yourself?" Fiyero asked, remembering the week quite clearly. He had been concerned about her, and the only reason he knew she was alive was because she kept ordering the servants to bring her more booze.

"Yes. It was a mostly unintentional miscarriage. Day three was when I… when the… when it happened. For the next two days, I just tried to drink myself down the drain. I was so disappointed when I woke up and saw my bed." She admitted in a rush. A few tears spilled over onto her cheeks. "I hated myself so much for being so selfish."

With a tenderness Elphaba had never known him to have, Fiyero kissed away her tears, gently pushing her into their main bedroom. They made love for the first time that night.

A frantic knocking at their bedroom door woke them much too early the next morning. Fiyero drew the blanket over Elphaba and struggled into his trousers before opening it, scowling at the servant who stood there.

"My lord, my lady." He seemed confused to find Elphaba in Fiyero's room. Fiyero scowled at him and dragged the manservant out of the room. Elphaba laid the bed, her eyes delighting in the path of his tattoos as they disappeared into the waistband of his trousers, and the way his muscles rippled in the meager light. With a small sigh as he vanished from sight around the corner, she threw her legs over the side of the bed, attempting to catch the low rumble of voices that was her husband and his manservant. She had just found her dress and gotten her arms through when Fiyero reappeared, looking angry. He saw her fumbling with her zipper and went to her, his hand brushing her skin once or twice. Elphaba resisted the temptation to turn around and make him take her dress off again, sensing his anger, just under the surface, waiting to blow.

"What is it?" Elphaba asked finally.

"Galinda." Fiyero said shortly, running a hand through his hair.

"What about her?" Elphaba's mind drew a blank.

"She's here.

* * *

><p>AN: I felt like an awesome writer as I write this, because it's about three in the morning, I have a large cup of coffee in front of me in a Wicked mug, and I am switching between this and jotting down ideas for another story. It's pretty legit. And the mug says 'Don't make me call the flying monkeys'. Snicker.  
>PS: Sorry this is so late; Not only have I had a very busy life these past few weekends, but I had been informed that the chapter that I tried to post about a week and a half ago (this one) had been posted; but my computer lied to me... so Here is chapter six, finally!<p> 


	7. Chapter 7

**Seven**

"She's…" Elphaba's voice trailed off in disbelief.

"Here." Fiyero confirmed.

"Why?" Elphaba incredulously.

"I have no clue." Fiyero ran a hand through his hair. "I specifically told her that she shouldn't stay here."

"Fiyero, that's why she came! If you tell her not to do something, she will do exactly just what you told her not to do!" Elphaba yelled, throwing her hands up. "It's how her bubbly, blond brain works."

"Well, I'm sorry!" Fiyero fired back, tugging on a shirt angrily. "I didn't think that she–"

Elphaba cut him off. "Of course you didn't think! Fiyero, did you think when you started dating her, when you slept with her? Don't you think that maybe she'll want to get married?"

"No, I didn't think, alright?" Fiyero slammed his fist on a desk, making it's contents- and Elphaba- jump a bit.

Fiyero took a deep breath. "Listen, Elphaba, I just… I just can't find it in me to break her heart."

"Oh, great," Elphaba said sarcastically. "Now you've gone and fallen in love with her."

"I haven't fallen in love with her!" Fiyero denied.

"Yes you have." Elphaba said, quietly, feeling tightness in her chest. "You just haven't realized it yet."

"But I–" Fiyero protested, but Elphaba was already out of the room. Fiyero shook his head. "I fucking hate being married." He shook his head again and left to greet Galinda.

Dinner that night was tense. Galinda chattered on, oblivious to the glances the servants were sending her and her two friend's tense smiles. Elphaba did not want to smile for this girl that was her friend, but also her husband's mistress. There really was no other way to describe it.

She left the dinner early.

"Where are you going, Elphie?" Galinda pouted at her as she stood to leave.

"I have to check on Illyria." Elphaba made to leave, but, much to her dismay, Galinda jumped up, too.

"Oh! Can I see her? It's been so long." Elphaba sighed and nodded once, then strode out of the hall. She opened the door silently, just in case Illyria was asleep already, but, fortunately for Galinda, she wasn't.

"Oh, look at her! She's adorable!"

"I suppose she's rather cute, yes." Elphaba admitted.

"Oh, why is she in black?" Galinda pouted again. "I'm going to have to go shopping!" Her face lit up again at the prospect before turning back to the baby. "Hi, I'm Galinda! I'm going to be your Auntie, Little Li."

Elphaba stiffened; Galinda was going to be Auntie? "No nicknames, Galinda, you know that."

"Oh, Elphie." Galinda tittered, ignoring the green woman's wince. "Every baby needs a nickname."

"So I'm a baby?" Elphaba asked dryly.

"No, silly!" Galinda laughed again. "You're my best friend." Elphaba's eyebrow rose. When had she gone from Galinda's hated roommate to her best friend? Had she missed something in the past two months?

"And, we're going to go shopping! Very soon!" Galinda squealed, making Illyria cry a little bit. Elphaba gave her only child a Look, and she instantly ceased her soft sobs.

"Wow." Galinda watched with wide eyes. "You've trained your daughter."

Elphaba did not enjoy shopping. She did not want to be in this little boutique. And she especially did not want the pitying looks that the store clerk was giving her. For Elphaba was shushing Illyria while Galinda was pulling Fiyero to the dressing rooms so he could admire her in her next pink creation.

"Princess, do you want anything?" the store clerk asked.

"You wouldn't happen to have a good book, would you?" Elphaba asked, a hint of misery somehow creeping into her voice.

"Of course, Princess." The clerk disappeared behind a door for a moment before returning with two books.

"I wasn't sure if you wanted to read the little Princess a book." The clerk said softly, handing Elphaba a heavier, leather-bound book and one full of children's pictures. Without any debate, internal or external, Elphaba took the heavier book out of the clerk's arms.

"Midway upon the journey of our life, I found myself within a forest dark; for the straightforward pathway had been lost." She began reading to her months-old child. The clerk frowned slightly, but returned to her position behind the desk until Galinda was ready to leave nearly two hours later. By then Illyria had nodded off and Elphaba was well on her way there.

"Galinda, you really only bought one dress?" Elphaba asked incredulously when Galinda took out her purchase at the castle. "Out of the dozens you tried on?"

"Oh, yes. One must always limit themselves." Galinda tossed her hair, then turned towards Elphaba suddenly. "Elphie! We should have a sleepover!" Elphaba hesitated. "Galinda, I have to be able to tend to Illyria."

"Oh, can't the nursemaid do that?" Galinda waved an airy hand. "I've missed you so much this summer!"

Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "Really? I was under the impression that you hated me."

"Oh, Elphie." Galinda tittered for the second time in as many days. "Surely rooming together cemented our friendship. Besides, someday we'll be sisters! Oh! We can plan my wedding!" Elphaba winced, her eyes prickling a little bit.

Galinda noticed her hesitancy. "Come'n, Elphie. It'll be fun. And you can take a break from the baby for a night."

Elphaba nodded once and tuned to leave.

"Where are you going?" Galinda asked.

"I need to ask Fiyero to look after the baby." Elphaba lied. Walking quickly, she found Fiyero in the library, reading a book for school.

"Yes?" He asked, looking all to pleased to have a reason to put his book down.

"Galinda's convinced that you two will marry." It was not Elphaba's way to tiptoe around a subject.

"Ah." Fiyero blinked. "We already talked about this."

"Yeah, but when we talked yesterday morning, I only had suspicions that she wanted to marry you." Elphaba said sourly. "Now I know. And, Fiyero, I swear to Kumbrica, if you don't tell her by winter break, I will."

"No you won't." Fiyero said, suddenly standing up.

"Oh, why not?" Elphaba challenged.

"Because I'm your husband, and you will do what I say." Fiyero glared down at her.

"Oh, now we're married?" Elphaba voice rose.

"We have always been married!" Fiyero's eyes darkened a shade in anger.

"Then act like it!" Elphaba screamed right back.

"I have!" He yelled at her, pointing towards their quarters.

"That was once in nearly five years!" Elphaba cried, throwing up he hands.

"I was talking about Illyria!"

"She's a daughter, a GIRL! She means nothing!"

Fiyero stilled at her words. "She's our daughter. She's beautiful."

"But she's not an heir." Elphaba said, still not calm. "She's not a boy."

"I know that the idea of 'us' repulses you, but, really, is it so horrible?" Fiyero asked, beginning to reach out a hand, but thinking better of it.

"It's not even all that." Elphaba took a deep breath. "I don't want her to end up like Kaliana." Fiyero shot her a dark glance at his sister's name.

"We can make sure that she doesn't."

"Can we?" Elphaba asked sadly. "Aren't your parents in charge of marrying the children? And they're young; no. Illyria will most likely never know any form of love in her life."

"Then we should give it to her." Fiyero grabbed Elphaba's shoulders.

"I can't, Fiyero." Elphaba looked down. "It is better to not know what she's missing then to have it for only a short while."

"Is it?" Fiyero asked, then shook his head and walked away, leaving Elphaba alone again.

"Elphaba?" Galinda asked late one night, shaking Elphaba from her thoughts.

"Hmm?" Elphaba asked, sitting up straighter in her bed. Was Galinda still talking? She had tuned the bubbly girl out when she started discussing what exact color of pink she wanted the rose petals to be that the flower girls tossed in front of her.

"I don't mean to be rude or anything, but I've been here for almost a week, and I was just kinda wondering…" She paused.

"Just spit it out, Galinda." Elphaba said, lazily reaching for a cherry.

"Where's your husband?"

Elphaba froze and almost dropped the cherry back in the bowl. Frowning, she ate the cherry slowly, giving her time to think of a reasonable excuse. Or, should she tell Galinda? No, she had given Fiyero until Lurlinemas.

"He's in the Emerald City." She said. "Some sort of business."

"You don't know?" Galinda asked incredulously.

"No. He never tells me." Elphaba said. "And he's normally gone for a while." She added to make the lie a long-term thing, in case Galinda decided to stay longer than the two weeks that she had told them. She had decided that she wanted to stop at home before going back to Shiz.

"Elphaba?" Galinda's tone was serious, which surprised Elphaba; her blond friend had never been serious for more than a few seconds before, save when she found out about Elphaba's pregnancy.

"What?"

"Do you think that… maybe he's… you know… cheating on you?" Galinda asked timidly.

Elphaba paused again, lying back down. "I don't think so."

"But, I mean, he's away a lot apparently, and for long amounts of time, and he didn't even come to Illyria's birth, and he doesn't tell you what he's doing, and–" Galinda started rambling, listing off many factors that pointed towards 'he's cheating on you'.

Elphaba cut her off before she forgot to breathe. "I said I didn't think so, and I don't. I know that he is." She pulled the covers over her head and let a single tear drop down her face. What was it about Galinda that made her so much more open? Her life had been much better before Galinda, before she and Fiyero had made a rocky peace… before she cared about things like that.

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><p>AN: I have decided upon Fridays as my new posting days, as I have a winter-guard competition tomorrow AND the thirty-first... aka, the next two updates.


	8. Chapter 8

**Eight**

"Elphie!" Galinda squealed, holding Elphaba as if they had not just seen each other last week.

"Please let go." Elphaba asked, frozen.

"Is Illyria here? Or have you found someone to care for her over the semester?" Galinda, looked Elphaba over as if Illyria was hidden somewhere in the folds of her dress. In response, Elphaba gestured over her shoulder to where Illyria and all her furniture were being unloaded. Rushing forward, Galinda scooped Illyria out of a surprised servant's hands. Elphaba waved off their protests.

"Put this in Room 203." Elphaba said wearily.

"Where's Fiyero?" Galinda finally tore herself away from Illyria and looked around for her boyfriend.

"He woke up late." Elphaba said simply. "I didn't."

"You left him in the Vinkus!" Galinda sounded torn between humor and amusement.

"No. He's about an hour behind me." Elphaba shrugged and took Illyria from Galinda as she started to cry a little. "Quiet, you." She bounced the baby twice to get her to stop crying.

"Oh, Elphie, you're such a good mother." Galinda cooed, looking at Elphaba with big blue eyes. Elphaba smiled crookedly and snorted. "No, you are!" Galinda protested.

"Galinda, I don't even love the chit." Elphaba said, staring at Galinda. Did her blissful bubble not comprehend that? That a parent could feel no form of attachment other than responsibility for their child?

"What?" Galinda gaped at her green friend. Apparently she couldn't comprehend that.

"Nothing. Never mind. She's just been annoying me today because of the ride." Why was she lying? She resented the child, to be sure, and she had never told anyone differently. So… why was Galinda different?

"Oh, I'm sure every child did does that!" Galinda took Elphaba's bony arm in her own and began to lead her into the dorms. "Even I had bad days as a child." Galinda looked so horrified by this that Elphaba had to laugh.

"What were you like as a child, Elphaba?" Galinda asked when they were almost to their room, servants still coming and going around them, bring in their various clothes, furniture, and accessories.

Elphaba paused before answering. "Green." She finally said.

Galinda laughed, slightly nervously. "No, really, Elphaba, what were you like as a child? Were you playful?"

"I doubt that I have ever been 'playful'." Elphaba deadpanned. "I simply do not remember much or my childhood, nor do I wish to."

"Why not, Elphie?" Galinda pouted.

"My childhood was short and bitter." Elphaba shrugged. "I have never wished to relive it." Galinda was about to question her further when they heard Fiyero's laugh through the open window.

"Oh, look, he had Avaric drive him again." Elphaba commented. "Well, at least he's awake this time."

"Who's that?" Galinda pointed to the other side of the street, where a stately old man and what seemed to be his daughter climbed out of a carriage. Well, the man climbed out. His daughter was handed to him and placed gently on a wheelchair.

"Oh, no." Elphaba groaned. "No, no, no." She dashed out of the room, leaving a very confused Galinda to follow at a slower pace.

Elphaba stopped on a dime halfway between the new arrivals and Fiyero. Looking between them quickly, she walked to Fiyero, who was saying his farewells to Avaric.

"Fiyero, darling." She plastered a very fake smile on her face and latched onto him. He shot her a bewildered look.

"What do you want?"

"His Eminence of Munchkinland is here with his daughter. As the Crown Prince and Princess of the Vinkus, we should greet our equals." Elphaba tugged at his arm.

"Of Munchkinland?" Fiyero's eyes widened almost imperceptibly. "Well, it looks like it's time for me to meet the in-laws."

"Indeed." They started to make their way to the Munchkinlanders. The two looked up at their arrival.

"Your Eminence." Fiyero bowed slightly. "Miss Thropp."

"Ah, your Highnesses." Frexspar bowed back. Nessarose bobbed her head in greeting.

"Sister." Elphaba greeted her so formally that it was unclear if she was using the informal greeting, or merely employing the use of the royal 'we'.

"Fiyero!" Galinda had caught up. "Oh, hello!" She greeted the solemn Munchkinlanders. "I'm Galinda Arduenna of the Upper Uplands. Who are you?"

"Galinda, meet His Eminence, Frexspar Thropp, and his daughter Nessarose, the Third Eminent Thropp Descending." Elphaba gestured first to her father, then to her sister.

"How do you do?" Galinda said politely, extending her hand. It was ignored and she dropped it after a few moments.

"Princess Elphaba, would you please take Miss Thropp to her room." Frexspar commanded Elphaba politely. "Prince Fiyero, if you wouldn't mind showing me the campus that my daughter is to live on?" Elphaba bit her lip at his blatant dismissal of her own relation to him, but did as he wished.

"How have you been, Nessarose?" Elphaba asked once they were out of earshot of Galinda.

"I've been well enough." Elphaba admitted. "It has been a while since I last heard tidings from Munchkinland. How have you been? And Father?"

"We have been well. Munchkinland has, unfortunately, been caught in a small drought for the past year. Not too horrible, but, we do pray to the Unnamed God to give our land rain. Have you been praying to the Unnamed God? For the soul of you and yours?" Elphaba winced, remembering why she had not missed her family all that much.

"Of course."

"And how is… oh, what's her name again?" Nessa's pale brow creased in forgetfulness.

"Illyria Khasra." Elphaba replied shortly. "Named for Fiyero's maternal grandfather and, of course, the Queen."

"Ah. A good name." Nessa commented.

"I suppose so, yes. She is well. Loud, but she is beginning to sleep through the night." Elphaba admitted.

"She does look well." Nessa said, still formal.

Elphaba nodded. "You will most likely be seeing each other more, as I don't yet feel comfortable leaving her in a dorm for most of the day, alone." Nessa hmmed in some sort of agreement, and the conversation lapsed.

"Here is your room." Elphaba said finally, breathing a small sigh of relief. "Do you have servants for your luggage?"

"One, our old Nanny." Nessa bit her lip and looked down.

"I thought as much." Elphaba said. "I'll send a few over to help you." Nessa nodded, and Elphaba curtsied before leaving.

As she had suspected, Galinda was waiting in their room, wanting answers. "Who were they?"

Elphaba sighed. "I told you. His Emin-"

"I know their titles. I meant who were they that you ran out of the room to greet them?" Galinda specified.  
>"Ah." Elphaba paused, formulating a plausible excuse. "They are, technically, our royal cousins. And we- that is to say, the Vinkus, doesn't have the best of relations with Munchkinland."<p>

"Oh." Galinda said simply. "Why?"

Did she have to press the issue? "Bad blood along the line or something, I suppose." Elphaba said, knowing exactly who the bad blood was; her. She didn't ever try to deny that her father had married her off because he hated her. And that he hated because she was the reason for Nessa's perfection being marred. She had never known any sort of love or affection, at least from him. And if her Nanny had ever doted on her, it was surely long before her memory started. And her mother… well, had she lived, she would most likely take the same path as her husband.

"Elphaba?" Galinda asked about an hour later.

"Yes, Galinda?"

"Why do you always seem older than everyone else here?" Galinda leaned over her vanity, looking blankly at the sea of make up that covered it.

"What made you so inquisitive?" Elphaba set down her book and looked at her roommate.

"I don't know." Galinda pouted. "But I've been thinking and things recently! I think you're rubbing off on me."

Elphaba stood up and spun Galinda in a circle, looking at her skin. "Nope. No green yet." She flashed a gob smacked Galinda a small smirk and turned back to her bed.

"Elphie!" Galinda squealed, hopping around madly. "You made a joke!"

"Galinda, what are you squealing about?" Fiyero entered the room, having just finished unpacking. Elphaba immediately snapped her facial features to show cold indifference.

"Elphie made a joke! And she smiled!" Galinda repeated herself.

"No, I didn't." Elphaba protested.

"Well, it was more of a smirk than a smile, but she did make a joke!" Galinda refused to let Elphaba's abrupt change of attitude disrupt her from her own happiness.

"Hm. Never seen that before." Fiyero frowned momentarily. "Galinda, I was wondering if you wanted to go to dinner with me?"

"What's the occasion?" Galinda giggled and fluttered her eyelashes. Elphaba rolled her eyes and picked her book back up.

"Do I need an occasion to take a pretty girl out?" Fiyero asked, pulling out all the stops in his charm. Galinda sighed in happiness and nodded. With a short nod to Elphaba, Fiyero left the two girls alone.

"Elphaba, I have a really important question." Galinda turned to her green friend.

"Again?" Elphaba asked, a slightly dark humor coloring her voice.

"Yes. I've thought a lot this summer, I told you!" Galinda giggled again.

"So what's the question?" Elphaba was impatient to get back to her book.

"Um, well." Uncharacteristically, Galinda blushed heavily, causing Elphaba to frown.

"Yes?" She prompted, her curiosity piqued.

"What is, um _sex_ like?" Galinda whispered the word as if it was an animate entity all on it's own.

"You mean you've never?" Elphaba's eyes nearly popped out of her head. That meant that he had gone five months without sex… and that he respected Galinda enough to not force himself on her.

"No… I know that Fiyero would like to do it," Elphaba snorted at Galinda's understatement. "But I don't know… Momsie always told me to save it for marriage…" Galinda paused again, taking in Elphaba's stiff posture and slightly shocked expression.

Elphaba realized that Galinda was staring and shook herself slightly. "Yes, go on."

"But, I was thinking, I'm almost one hundred percent sure that Fiyero is going to propose to me. So, I mean, do you think I should… you know?" Galinda trailed off.

"Galinda, why do you want to have sex with Fiyero?" Elphaba faced her friend fully.

"Because it'll make him happy." Galinda responded immediately.

"But is it what you want? Because once your virginity is taken, you can never get it back, ever; even if Fiyero doesn't marry you. And, unless I am much mistaken, that means that you can never enter a respectable marriage." Elphaba finished on her feet, looking Galinda in the eye, hoping that she would understand, that somewhere in that brain that Galinda would hear her words.

"Why wouldn't Fiyero marry me?" Galinda asked, her head cocked to one side. Elphaba wanted to hit something; after all that, all her friend got was that Fiyero might not marry her?  
>"I don't know. Maybe his father won't allow it. He might die in a battle or something." Elphaba flung her hands up in exasperation.<p>

"But, I mean…"

"Galinda. Trust me. Don't sleep with Fiyero; it won't do you any good later on in your life." Elphaba closed the discussion with such an air of finality that Galinda didn't even question 'why'.

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><p>AN: Hey, people. WE got third at championships- wahoo! I am actually brain dead right now. Enjoy the read!


	9. Chapter 9

**Nine**

"Fiyero, you have two weeks until Lurlinemas." Elphaba whispered to her husband as they waited impatiently for Galinda to finish prepping herself for their night out.

"I know." He whispered back harshly. "I'm just waiting."

"For what?" Elphaba asked, eyes sparking. "For her to sleep with you?"

"No. I… I asked Father something." He admitted. Elphaba didn't take long to figure out what he was saying.

"Fiyero, nobody has ever had a second wife. Concubines, yes, although it's frowned upon, whores, yes, by the dozen, but never more than one wife." She snapped, feeling hurt. Would he leave her? Live with Galinda? Make _her_ his wife in all but name after making sure that Elphaba had a son securely in her arms?

"I know all that. But I want to see if there's anything that could be done." Fiyero admitted, more to himself than Elphaba.

"Fiyero, I am your wife; you have to remember that." Elphaba hissed, glancing over her shoulder at the door separating them and Galinda.

"How could I forget?" He muttered, wearily, running one hand through his hair.

"Oh, Fifi, darling, don't do that!" Galinda had emerged from the bathroom. "You'll mess up your hair!"

"It wasn't already messy?" Elphaba bit out. Fiyero glared at her for a moment before complimenting Galinda on her beauty.  
>"Oh, thank you, dearest! I was going for the festive theme!" Galinda bounced a bit, making the bobbles son her hat dance.<p>

"Yeah. We noticed." Elphaba said; she was not inclined to be nice to her husband's girlfriend at the moment, not after his revelation.

The sarcasm was lost on Galinda. "Oh, thank you, Elphie! Come on, let's go!"

Dinner was a tense affair, and Galinda babbled on in an attempt to cut the silence between Elphaba and Fiyero.

"Oh, I'm so excited for Lurlinemas and presents!" She giggled for at least the fifth time that night.

"Well, I'm sure Fiyero has a great present for you." Elphaba couldn't take it anymore.

"Elphaba." Fiyero snapped out at her, shaking his head tightly.

"Really? Will you tell me what it is?" Galinda leaned towards Elphaba like a co-conspirator.

"I might, if it gets in late." Elphaba said pointedly, staring at Fiyero still.

"Elphaba." Fiyero's voice held a note of warning.

"It has to do with his family, and why he can't–"

"Elphaba!" Fiyero roared, springing up, making Galinda shrink back into the seat.

"What, Fiyero? She deserves–" Elphaba was cut off by Fiyero again.

"Elphaba, you will listen to your prince!" Other patrons were beginning to stare.  
>"And you will listen to your princess!" Elphaba yelled right back. "You will listen to your w–" She caught sight of Galinda's wide, scared eyes and broke off.<p>

Fiyero's eyes widened, incensed. "Do not."

"Two weeks, my Prince." Elphaba spat out. She slammed her napkin down on the table and left the small diner.

"Elphie, wait!" She heard Galinda call out from behind her.

"Go back to your lover, Galinda. Enjoy the time you have left." She said without turning around.

"Elphie, no, you have to tell me." Galinda's heels echoed loudly in the cold air. "You have to talk about it."

"This isn't something I can talk to you about, and you shouldn't talk to me about it, either." Elphaba stopped walking, staring at a point slightly below the moon.

"What do you mean?" Galinda caught up to Elphaba.

"We are both too firmly entrenched in the root of the problem." Elphaba said blankly, as if she wasn't really there.

"Elphie?" Galinda turned her head to look at Elphaba. One of her bobbles brushed Elphaba's arm, and the taller girl started.

She stared at Galinda for a few seconds in surprise. "You should go back to Fiyero and calm his temper." She walked off again, leaving Galinda, thunderstruck, in the middle of the street.

By the time Elphaba had entered the dorm room, her eerie calm had faded, once again leaving anger as the main emotion in her body. Anger, her bosom companion for so long. She let herself fall to the floor, fingernails digging into her face. A silent scream ripped from her throat as the mirror and windows exploded behind her; a piece of glass tore into her dress and embedded itself in her skin. Elphaba sucked in her scream and bit her lip.

She heard a faint keening that was not coming from her. Ignoring it for the time, she bit her knuckle and slowly prized the one-inch shard out of her skin. She stared at it as a single drop on blood dripped down it, not noticing the pain from her side. Standing slowly, she placed the shard on her bedside table, clearing the debris from it with one swish of her hand. The keening persisted, irritating her head.

"Shut up." She whispered, her throat dry and rough from the prolonged scream. "Shut up, shut up, shut up!" She repeated, storming into her daughter's room. She stopped suddenly, taken aback by what was in font of her. It seemed that the destruction hadn't been contained to the main room.

For one heart-stopping moment, she thought that a mound of glass had buried Illyria. She approached the crib cautiously. This couldn't be happening, not now, not to her daughter. With one finger, she pushed the glass. A single piece fell into the crib, and Elphaba's eyes widened. Taking a deep breath, she inserted her finger into the small hole and hooked it upward, pulling the piece above the hole out.

_This is taking too long._ Elphaba thought to herself, wanting to know if her child was unharmed, wanting even more to know how this had happened. Had she, herself, unwittingly protected her child? Or, Elphaba hoped that this was not the case, had Illyria inherited Elphaba's own powers and protected herself? If it was the former, Illyria would have a long struggle against Vinkun society.

Elphaba was finally able to create a large enough hole for Illyria to fit through. Gently lifting the baby up, Elphaba checked her for any injuries, breathing a sigh of relief when there were none to be found.

"Elphaba?" She heard a voice calling her name from the other room. She took a deep breath to bring herself back into a controlled Princess before re-entering her bedroom.

"Hello, Nessarose." She said, bouncing Illyria gently on her hip to stop her from fussing. "What brings you here?"

"I had wanted to, perhaps, talk to you. Reacquaint ourselves, as it were. However," Nessarose glanced around the room, unsure. "It seems you're a bit busy?"

"Not at all." Elphaba ignored the glass that coated the floor and sank onto her bed. "What would you like to talk about?"

"Father is thinking of marrying me off."

"Oh?" Elphaba's brain froze. That had not been what she was expecting from her younger sister. "To whom?"

"Boq, of Munchkinland." Nessarose admitted, looking at her hands.

"Ah." Elphaba had seen the boy around. If she remembered correctly, he was short, rather insipid, and hopelessly in love with Galinda.

"And he knows that our parents are looking at a marriage for us. But…" Nessarose bit her lip and looked at the floor.'

"But he seems to want to enjoy his bachelorhood as long as possible?" Elphaba finished the sentence bluntly.

Nessarose blushed. "Well, yes."

"So, what do you want me to do about it? I hardly know the boy, and Father won't listen to me." Elphaba asked, wishing her sister would get to the point of it.

"Just, tell me that it's all worth it. The pretending to be in love, the things that they expect you to do…" Nessarose looked straight into her sister's eyes silently pleading, asking her sister to reassure her.

"I can't, not without lying." Elphaba broke the eye contact first. "The life of a wife is not the life that little girls can imagine." She paused, taking in Nessarose's pale face, wondering if she should try to make it not all seem horrible.

"However," she hesitated again. "Boq seems like a nice enough man. He won't hit you, or misuse you. And Father likes you enough that he won't include the… forced marital relations clause."

"What is that?" Elphaba envied Nessarose's innocence.

"The only reason the little Princess is here." Elphaba admitted.

"So marriage has very little to do with love?" Nessarose asked grimly.

"Less than very little. " Elphaba confirmed. "And the best advice I can give you is to sit back and not anger him."

"You don't follow your own advice." Nessarose pointed out, raising one eyebrow.

"And look where I am. My husband is on a date with his long-time girlfriend, who is my roommate." Elphaba pointed out. Nessarose nodded once.

"I suppose it wouldn't do to have me ask how you have been, then?" She asked wryly. Elphaba's mouth twitched slightly and she shook her head.

"Elphaba!" the green girl winced as she heard Galinda's heels on the floor. "Elphaba, Fiyero's–" She pulled up short upon seeing Nessarose.

"Hello, Galinda." Nessarose said frostily.

"Hi." Galinda missed the bite in Nessarose's voice. "Um, Elphaba, why is there glass everywhere?"

Elphaba blinked once, slowly. "I didn't want to clean it up."

"But why was it there in the first place?"

"No clue." Elphaba lied. "Miss Nessarose, would you like me to escort you back to your rooms?"

"No, no thank you. I believe I'll wheel myself around the campus for an hour or so." Nessarose said, directing her attention upon Elphaba. "Thank you." She said, quietly so Galinda wouldn't hear her.

"Of course… Nessa." Elphaba said, even more quietly. Nessarose blinked up at her, a small smile in her eyes.

"Until next time, then. Good night." Nessarose nodded at Elphaba and rolled herself out of the room.

"What was that about?" Galinda asked.

"None of your business." Elphaba put Illyria down as she began fussing softly. "Shush, you."

"Why is there glass everywhere? You have to know, Elphaba, I know you were lying before." Galinda persisted. Elphaba sighed and rotated her hand once, then flicked her fingers outward. The glass sailed back into its original position, if not its original state. There were several cracks running throughout the panes.

"What was that?" Galinda asked, her voice quivering.

"You are not allowed to tell Fiyero." Elphaba commanded her roommate. "Under any circumstances."

"What am I not telling him?" Galinda asked. Here eyes were wide and flickering back and forth between Elphaba and the windows.

"I am a witch." Elphaba said, her voice not belaying her nerves. She watched Illyria levitate the piece of glass that had been embedded in Elphaba's side. "And so is my daughter."

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><p>AN: Betcha didn't see that one coming! Enjoy, and if you could leave a review, that would make me smile quite a bit.


	10. Chapter 10

**Ten**

"Elphaba," Galinda whined, closing a book with a snap. "I'm bored. I don't want to study anymore."

"Galinda," Elphaba mocked her roommate's voice. "I don't want to fail. So stop pestering me."

"But I'm bored!" Galinda elongated the last syllable and pouted.

"Have Illyria entertain you." Elphaba flipped a page in her notes, nibbling on her thumbnail.

"But what if she's does," Galinda mouthed the word _magic_, "again?"

"Then learn from her." Elphaba rolled her eyes. "You wanted to be a sorceress, didn't you?"

"Well, yes, but,"

"Galinda!" Elphaba finally snapped. "Stop bothering me! Go find yourself something to do!" The blonde scowled at the green woman and stalked into the other room. A few moments later, Elphaba felt her lips curve into a wry smile as she heard Illyria's giggles that undoubtedly meant that Galinda was playing with her. Elphaba buried her head in her book, secure in the knowledge that she had at least a half hour to study.

Galinda's squeal interrupted her barely ten minutes later.

"What is it?" She groaned.

"Elphie!" Galinda squealed again.

"What?" Elphaba repeated, irritated.

"Elphie, come here!"

With a long-suffering sigh, Elphaba stood up and walked slowly to the nursery. Galinda was sitting on the floor with Illyria a few paces away.

"What s so important?" Elphaba asked.

"Watch!" Galinda clapped her hands and beckoned to Illyria, who looked at her.

"What?" Elphaba watched, unimpressed.

"No, she was doing it earlier." Galinda's brow furrowed. "Come here, Illyria. Come on over to Auntie Galinda." To Elphaba's surprise and Galinda's delight, Illyria scooted forward about a foot then stopped.

"Look, Elphie!" Galinda cooed, picking up the small princess and hugging her. "She crawled!"

"Cool." Elphaba blinked once. "I'm going back to my books."

"But, Elphie, this is a momentous event!" Galinda said, standing up, still cuddling Illyria.

"For her, it's just one step… or one crawl… towards her marriage." Elphaba sighed and looked at her daughter pityingly. "When she starts walking, we start looking for potential husbands."

"Oh." Galinda cocked her head to the side. "When do girls normally get married?"

"Depends on how old the groom is and their age difference. The marriage contract is signed when the girl is roughly five. They have to… consummate the marriage when the boy turns eighteen."

"Oh." Galinda said again.

"Yeah."

"What about boys?"

"Again, it depends." Elphaba shrugged. "It also depends on the availability of princesses or the like."

"Huh?"

"The Vinkus is the only land with an actual monarchy. So there aren't any actual princesses for them to marry from within Oz. Of course, they can marry into the ruling family of Ev." Elphaba started explaining. "In Munchkinland, they have the Eminent Thropp, so any daughters are like princesses. In the Gillikin, you have the ruling clan, and those daughters are the princesses of the Gillikin. There's no sort of royalty in Quadling Country or the Glikkin." She finished, hoping she had hit all of the lands.

"Oh. So who is Fiyero supposed to marry?" Galinda asked, forced casualness evident in her voice.

Elphaba paused. How on earth was she supposed to answer that? She could either raise Galinda's hopes or crush them. Fortunately, she was saved by a quiet knock on the door.

"Who is it?" Glinda called out.

"It's Nessarose. May I come in?" Elphaba darted over to the door and opened it, less thankful for the distraction when she saw her sister's tear-stained face.

"Nessa, what is it?" Elphaba wheeled her into the room and closed the door. "What happened?"

"F-father wrote to me." Nessa said, taking deep breaths to quell her newly-risen tears. "Boq has announced that he isn't going to marry me."

"What?" Elphaba asked, gob-smacked. That had never happened, in any of the lands, for as long as royal marriages had been taking place.

"Boq wrote to Father. He said that he had found true love here. And that it wasn't me." Nessa's tears had spilled over by the second sentence.

"But I thought you didn't like him much anyway?" Elphaba said, a little confused.

"I didn't." Nessa confessed. "But… he was my last chance at a husband."

"Why?" Elphaba laid a hand on her sister's knee.

"I'm handicapped, Elphaba!" Nessa cried out. "Nobody wants a handicapped wife that might not even be able to produce their heirs."

"But you're the Third Eminent Thropp Descending!" Elphaba said, her eyes wide. "For a commoner like Boq, even a rich one, that's a huge step up! And he doesn't need heirs!"

"He's in love!" Nessa buried her face in her hands. Elphaba put rubbed her back, trying to comfort the wheelchair-bound girl

"And I'm the Second Eminent Thropp Descending now." Nessa sobbed out brokenly.

"What?" Elphaba fell back on her heels.

"Grandfather took you out of the line when you moved to the Vinkus. He said no that no Wink–" Nessa stumbled over the name, sniffling. "No Vinkun would preside over Munchkinland."

"Elphaba, what does she mean by that? That you had moved to the Vinkus? Weren't you born there, same as Fiyero?" Galinda stepped in, her eyes wide, her lips trembling.

"Well what do you think she means?" snapped Nessarose. She was not as silly as many of the other girls at Shiz; she knew that the girl that Boq had fallen in love with was Galinda. And, even though she knew it wasn't Galinda's fault for being so perfect, she couldn't help but resent this girl that had all she had ever wanted, plus things she didn't want.

"Nessa, no. I haven't told her." Elphaba begged in a panicked undertone.

"Haven't told me what?" Galinda actually stomped her foot.

"Elphaba is my sister, not Fiyero's." Nessa said nastily, enjoying seeing this woman's life crumble in front of her.

"Elphaba, is this true?" Galinda turned to Elphaba, her eyes filled with tears, face pale, and hands trembling.

Elphaba hesitated. What should she do? She had said that Fiyero should tell Galinda, but, if she lied now, Galinda would still be hurt later. But it seemed that her silence had answered Galinda's question.

"You… you… how could you? I trusted you! I thought we were friends!" Galinda's face turned an ugly shade of red.

"I am your friend, Galinda." Elphaba said quietly, hating herself, hating this situation… why had she let it go on for so long? She knew that it would end like this. "But Fiyero is also my husband."

Galinda seemed to be on the verge of hyperventilation. "You… he… I can't… marriage…. And Illyria!" She fixed on the baby in Elphaba's arms. "You've been having sex with my boyfriend! You have a child!"

"Yes, I have, but, Galinda, please…" Elphaba pleaded, hoping against hope that Galinda would understand. Nessa watched this, wide-eyed.

"You liar! Freak! I hate you!" Galinda screamed at Elphaba and threw open the door. Unfortunately, Fiyero was there, his hand raised as if he had been about to knock. Elphaba assumed he had been called down to deal with his screaming girlfriend.

"I thought we had a future!" She screamed at him. "And it's all a lie!" She slapped him, hard, then slapped him again. "I hate you! I hate all of you!"

She shoved past Fiyero and disappeared into the hall.

"What. Happened." Fiyero growled at Elphaba. She clutched Illyria closer to her.

"Galinda knows."

"How." It wasn't even a question.

Elphaba half-glanced at Nessa, not wanting her sister to feel Fiyero's wrath, but also not wanting herself to be under Fiyero's wrath, either.

"I told her." She finally said. "I was tired of pretending."

Nessa shot her sister an odd look but didn't argue.

"Nessa, you should go." Elphaba said as Fiyero's hands clenched. Nessa obeyed.

"I still had two days." He growled at her.

"I know, I'm sorry." Elphaba backed up a bit. "It slipped out when we were talking about my marriage."

"You said you wouldn't tell." Fiyero advanced further.

"I'm sorry!" Elphaba repeated, truly scared of Fiyero for the first time since they had first started living together.

"You lost me my girlfriend." He said, so close now that Elphaba could feel the heat radiating from his body. She closed her eyes, waiting for the blow that she knew would come. Moments later Illyria started crying as Elphaba crumpled into the bed, curled around her daughter.

* * *

><p>AN: I know I've given you many reasons to hate me, but please don't kill me? Please just be patient for a while. Also, I will not have access to a computer this summer, so from roughly the end of May to the beginning of September, I will not be updating. I will be writing, though!


	11. Chapter 11

**Eleven**

A little more than four days later, Fiyero and Elphaba were sitting in a tense silence, almost to Kiamo Ko. Elphaba had been waiting for Fiyero's anger to break since the incident; indeed, she was amazed that he had held it in this long, after his initial release. She still had a large bruise on her ribs and it hurt to hold Illyria, one of the reasons that Illyria was traveling with a servant in the other carriage.

"We're here." Elphaba glanced up at the driver's voice.

"Thank you." She responded. Elphaba got out of the carriage and was about to fetch Illyria from the other carriage when Fiyero grabbed her arm and dragged her into the castle. Elphaba couldn't help but feel a twinge of fear, even though she had been preparing herself for this for the entirety of the carriage ride.

Fiyero threw her bodily onto the bed, red-faced.

"You said you wouldn't tell." Elphaba could only nod and flinch as his fist made contact with her already bruised ribs. She curled into a ball to protect herself, but Fiyero's booted foot made contact with the back of her knee. Crying out back arching, Elphaba accepted the rain of blows to her sides, stomach, legs; whatever piece of flesh Fiyero could reach. On the point of unconsciousness, Elphaba vaguely heard the sound of a zipper being pulled down and her dress being shoved up.

"Happy Lurlinemas." She thought to herself groggily, before everything faded, finally, mercifully, to black.

* * *

><p>It was nearly a week before Elphaba was able to bring herself to partake in a longer journey than that from her bed to her bathroom and back. When she arrived in Illyria's nursery, it was to find the child very much alone and silent. Elphaba raced to the child's crib, her eyes wide and her heart in her chest. What if—<p>

Elphaba refused to let the thought surface. Fiyero would not be that cruel, not to his own flesh and blood.  
><em>But it's your flesh and blood, too.<em> That nasty, treacherous part of her brain reminded her. For once, Elphaba squashed that part of her brain. Illyria was just a child. Her heart stopped when she saw Illyria, peacefully sleeping, one small hand tucked into her mouth, the other clutching tightly to he ear. She only stirred slightly when Elphaba placed a cool hand on her soft cheek, caught by the beauty of it, of her child.

"Ma'am!" Elphaba's hand flew off her baby, barely six months old.

Elphaba replaced her usual stern look before turning to face the maidservant. "I was just going."

"Of course… His Highness is in the library. I believe he is waiting for you." The servant bobbed a curtsy as Elphaba brushed past her.

"I'm sure he is." Elphaba muttered once she was sure the servant was out of earshot.

However, it was not Fiyero who was waiting for her in the library.

"Your Majesty." Elphaba dipped a curtsy, cursing maids who didn't know how to address a prince as opposed to a king.

"Daughter." Metab studied her. "You do not look well."

"I look as well as I feel, your majesty." Elphaba hedged. She knew her face was still puffy, and there was sure to be a bruise or two on it, but he shouldn't be able to see most of her injuries.

"I see." He regarded her for a moment and blinked once. "Sit."

It was more of an order than a request, and Elphaba gratefully took her weight off of her ankle, sinking into an armchair.

"I have been made aware that relations between you and my sin are less than cordial." Metab started talking as soon as he saw that she was seated comfortably. Elphaba stared at him politely until it became apparent that he was waiting for confirmation of his statement… although, really, he should be able to see it.

"I am not, currently, on the best of terms with the Prince, no." Elphaba said, still polite. She would not forget his reaction when he learned that she had borne a daughter instead of a son, nor the fact that he had yet to see his granddaughter since the day she had been born.

"I see." He repeated, stroking the beginnings of a small beard that Elphaba had just noticed. Personally, she thought it looked rather silly, as if he were trying to look the part of a much younger man.

She studied him carefully as they sat in silence for some time, Elphaba waiting to hear what, exactly, he had come here for. His face was more lined than it was nearly six months previously, and he was paler, although that could be due to the lighting. Elphaba doubted that the lights were entirely to blame, however, as she took in his drawn expression and flaps of skin that were hanging from him, as if he had lost weight. In short, he looked old. Elphaba had never considered this before. She knew that he must be at least fifty, as he was nearer thirty when Fiyero was born, and Fiyero was now twenty-three, almost twenty-four. And yet he had always been in the best of conditions, giving him the appearance of one who was physically stalled at thirty or so. But, now, here in the light of the library, he looked closer to sixty than to fifty, ancient really. Elphaba realized that as she was studying him, he had spoken.

"My apologies, I was lost in thought." She said abruptly.

"I thought as much." He nodded. "Elphaba, you must remain at least cordial with Fiyero."

"I will not let our personal life show in public, My Lord." Elphaba said, stung. That was the main lesson that she had been taught since her birth, really. Her emotions did not matter, only those of the kingdom. The kingdom always comes first.

"Yes, yes, yes. Elphaba, you must produce an heir." He leaned forward slightly.

"I know that." Elphaba was taken aback. She knew this; he knew she knew this, so why was he telling her? It had only been six months since Illyria was born, after all. Babies take time.

"Elphaba, you must produce an heir. As soon as possible." His eyes blazed briefly.

"My lord?"

"I am old, Elphaba. And I grow weary. When Fiyero inherits the throne, he must already have an heir so that others who would seek to take the throne for themselves have no reason to doubt him. And so that, if he should die young, there is someone to take over, even if they area child still." Metab frowned deeply at Elphaba, hoping, praying that she would understand what he was trying to say.

He was not disappointed. Elphaba's eyes widened almost imperceptibly.

"Are there already?" She simply asked. Metab nodded gravely, and Elphaba folded her hands in her lap, considering this new information.

"There are some who find his behavior to be ominous. If he cannot control his own vices, of which I will be among the first to admit that he has many…" Metab trailed off, leaving Elphaba to wonder if his mind was going with his body. She sincerely hoped not. While she did not like the man or many of his policies, the Vinkus needed a strong, sane king.

"My Lord?" She asked when the pause had grown uncomfortably long.

"Hmm? Oh, yes, they believe that if he cannot control himself, then how is he to control the Vinkun. They see him as weak already, and, while I hope that he will outgrow these habits, he needs to have everything that he can to consolidate his power." Metab finished, once again looking at Elphaba intensely.

"I understand." Elphaba nodded once, then paused. "Why are you telling me this, why not just tell him?"

"My son does not quite grasp the gravity of the situation. Nor does he have some of the… necessary skills to " Metab scowled, not at Elphaba, more at his errant son.

Again, Elphaba understood. She knew, of all people, she knew that Fiyero was neither studious, nor did he want to be. And now she would have to be the one to make him a king underneath the crown that would adorn his head.

Elphaba sighed as a servant escorted Metab out. It would be a very long, very steep uphill battle. But what choice did she have?

* * *

><p>AN: Hey there. Yes, I'm alive, though not for lack of trying. Posting will be spotty, as I'm kinda trying to cope with a lot of things in both school (senior year, wahoo) and in my personal life. I'm really sorry for not updating sooner, life just got in the way. Hope to see you all soon.


	12. Chapter 12

**Twelve**

The carriage ride back to Shiz was the first time that Elphaba and Fiyero had been alone since the first day of Winter Break. It was an awkward, angry affair, with Fiyero sitting in a stony silence and Elphaba hesitant to talk to him, bouncing Illyria slightly in her arms. She had been mulling over the problem that the king had presented her with for nearly a week now, and, thought she knew exactly what she had to do, she had no idea how to do it. She would need to gain his forgiveness, and his trust, and, above all, she would need to avoid his anger. The last one would be the hardest to achieve, as it seemed, from the start of their marriage, that he could find fault with every thing that she did. How she walked and talked, at the beginning, how she thought too much, how she was too visible, how she didn't hesitate to share her opinion when she shouldn't, and then wouldn't say a word when he wanted her opinion.

Illyria cooed in Elphaba's arms, and she half-glanced down, assuring herself that all was well. And then the thought struck. Part of her task was to produce an heir for the throne. If she could use Fiyero's tenderness for children, for his children, to her advantage… Elphaba chanced a glance at her husband. His head was propped up on his fist, as it had been the entirety of the trip, and he glared sullenly out of the window, as if there was something gripping about the bleak rocks on their left. She sighed a little. He looked like an overgrown child, on his way to the less-favored grandparent's house and sulking in uncomfortable clothes.

Fiyero had felt his gaze upon her. For a moment their eyes met, Elphaba's sad and appraising with Fiyero's angry. He opened his mouth as if to speak, but shook his head and turned back to the window. Elphaba cursed herself. She could have taken that moment for advancement in her plan! She shook her head, too. She sounded like she was manipulating him for the worse, as if she was twisting his mind to treason. It couldn't be further from the truth.

Hours later, long after she had been lulled into sleep by the rocking of the carriage, she was jolted back to wakefulness by Fiyero's heavy boot against her shin, which had just begun to heal.

"We're here." He scowled at her and climbed out of the carriage, not bothering to help her out or even hold the door for her. For once, there was no joyous squeal that greeted him, no smattering of giggles and sighs, no throngs of adoring girls. The air rung with the silence, only the low chatter of the servants breaking the tension that hung heavily on the royal couple. Elphaba braced herself before stepping out of the carriage. There were other people in the main campus, all easily visible, but none of them approached Fiyero. Elphaba ducked back into the carriage to retrieve Illyria and, nodding once to the servants, started walking briskly to her room. Galinda was there when she entered, and Elphaba immediately turned around to leave again.

"They won't split us up." Galinda's voice was heavy, a large difference from her usually bright and perky tone. "I already asked."

"I was just…" Elphaba floundered for an excuse to leave, but she couldn't find one. She sat down heavily on her bed and waved the servant that had followed with her suitcase toward her dresser. A few moments later, another servant came up with Illyria's larger case and deposited it in the spare room. The two girls remained silent as the servants unpacked for Elphaba, who nodded her thanks once they were finished.

"I'm sorry, Galinda." Elphaba finally said. "I'm sorry that you had to find out like that, that I didn't tell you before…" she didn't know what else to say. She was sorry, desperately so, and yet, at the same time, she felt justified. It was not her fault, not really. Fiyero had been the one to take up with Galinda; he had been the one to seal Elphaba to silence, even after her pregnancy. And yet, why had Elphaba not made it known to the school as a whole that she was married to the man when she came?

"I changed my name." Elphaba started; she hadn't ever expected those words to come out of the blonde's mouth, and especially not after this apology.

"I realized over break that 'Galinda' was a girl's name. Girls believe in fairy-tale ending and white knights and princes. They think that if one sits prettily enough and smiles wide enough that her Prince Charming will come and sweep her away to her castle, she she'll sit prettily smile widely for the rest of her life.

"But 'Glinda' is a woman's name. Women have realized that there aren't any perfect princes. There are nice guys, there are smart guys, there are rich guys, and there are pretty guys. There aren't any guys who are all four. We have to settle for two or three of those characteristics, and we have to go looking for the guy."

Elphaba was at a loss for words. It was a well thought-out speech, one that she could tell came from her roommate's heart and not from a book or magazine. But it seemed that Galinda- now Glinda- was waiting for an answer.

"I'm sorry." Was all that came out of her mouth.

"It's not your fault that he chose to cheat on you. With me." Glinda turned her back to Elphaba, avoiding her eyes, and, in that moment, Elphaba knew that while Glinda would forgive her fully in time, the blonde would never forget who did get her prince by sitting there. They sat in silence for a while longer, neither looking directly at the other, but each sneaking glances at the other. Elphaba noted the new lines in her old friend's face that had not been there before, the paler skin and red eyes that spoke of sleepless nights. Her hair fell more naturally across the blonde's neck and shoulders than it's tight curl would have ever allowed, but it still retained some of it's curl. Elphaba was grateful; that, more than anything else, told her that the perkiness and bubbliness of Glinda was still there.

While Elphaba looked Glinda over, she too was taking in all of her friend that she could in those quick, sharp glances. The green girl was even thinner than she had been before, thinner than she had been since before Illyria was conceived. She looked tired, too, more tired than anyone had a right to be and still stand. There were also shadows of a darker green than her emerald skin on her cheek and neck. It took Glinda a moment to realize the fading bruises for what they were, and she guessed (correctly) that they continued underneath the coarse material of Elphaba's dress.

"How is Illyria?" Glinda decided to ask, not wanting, or not able, to put a voice to the questions that swirled around in her head.

"_What did he do to you, my friend? Are you hurt, because of me, and my own selfishness?"_

* * *

><p>AN: Hey again. I'm not going to say that I'll be posting regularly from now on, but I will be posting on Saturdays, or, if I have a competition, on Sundays. Hope you liked this one. I wasn't too sure about Glinda's partial forgiveness, but I guess that I'm keeping it.


	13. Chapter 13

**Thirteen**

Glinda heard the crying almost as soon as she entered the hallway and turned her pale face to the wall as He passed by quickly. It still hurt to think of Him as more than just a thing from her past life. He was, when she cut down to the thinnest quick as she tossed and turned at night, unable to sleep for tiredness. But he was so much more, and he had carried over into this new persona she had created for herself. Try as she might, she couldn't hate him. She was angry with him, she wanted to strangle him whenever she saw him, yes. But she couldn't bring herself to hate this boy that had held her heart for so long. She slipped into the room to find Elphaba looking a little rumpled, Illyria in her arms.

"Shhh, Illyria, please." Glinda avoided Elphaba's eye as the mother tried to get her child to calm down. The two had not talked since their awkward reunion beyond those words spoken for social politeness, such as 'Good morning', or 'Class was cancelled today, Professor Dillamond has a cold'. Illyria did not stop crying.

"Why was F—your hus—" Glinda cleared her throat, trying to find a way to say his name that didn't sting her throat and eyes. Thankfully Elphaba understood what she was asking.  
>"I still have my wifely duty to do." Elphaba avoided Glinda's eyes and rubbed at her cheek, regret and the slightest touch of defiance in her voice. Glinda could see the faintest outline of a hand around her neck that was sure to bruise.<p>

"I'm sorry." She didn't know why she was apologizing.

"It's fine. Not your fault." Elphaba was clearly awkward, rubbing at her cheek a little harder. Silence fell again between the two, Illyria still crying lustily.

"Why is she crying so much? She's normally so quiet." Glinda gestured to the baby after a long pause.

"She doesn't like her father very much." Elphaba told Glinda only the barest part of the truth. Fiyero never hit Illyria, true, as he would have to touch her for that. But he wouldn't look her way more than a vague 'Shut up' as he bore down on her mother. And as small, as young as Illyria was, she understood that her mother was in pain, was not enjoying what this man, only vaguely familiar in the depths of her memory, did to her.

"Do you want me to take her for a bit?" Glinda offered. Her own surprise at those words was as large as Elphaba's. "It's just… you look tired. And a bit, you know, battered." Glinda's eyes flicked to Elphaba's neck again, and moved to a small tear on the shoulder of the black dress that had not been there before. Still, Elphaba hesitated.

"I'll just entertain her in here for a bit while you get cleaned up." Glinda cupped her hand around the baby's face, moving in close to Elphaba. Illyria quieted just the slightest bit at Glinda's touch, deciding Elphaba's mind. She handed the baby to her blonde friend.

"I'll be in the bathroom." She gestured vaguely to the door. "She should… _should_ be going to sleep soon. But, with what happened today..." She trailed off unhelpfully, making Glinda wonder just how bad it had been today. Was it worse than normal? Or was it just normal, but Illyria had seen? Glinda thought she knew the answer, but didn't want it confirmed. She could not combine this picture of Elphaba's abusive, cheating husband with her own charming Fiyero that could dance the night away. She wondered idly as she played with Illyria's fingers, if Elphaba had ever seen that side of Fiyero. She doubted it.

She could hear the sound of water running in the bathroom and hoped that Elphaba had the sense to put soap in with the water so she could relax even more. Glinda had just stood up to suggest that Elphaba use Glinda's own, the one scented with jasmine, when Fiyero barged into the room. The scent of alcohol reached Glinda's nose, even from halfway across the room. When his eyes lit upon her, holding the child, his eyes changed. Glinda could not tell if it was for the better or the worse for her.

"Galinda." He reached out to her as if he could reach her from across the room. "Galinda."

The blonde took a few steps away from him and remained silent.

"Fae's not here, ishe?" His words slurred together slightly, an altogether impressive display, considering how thoroughly inebriated he was.

"She's just in the other room." Glinda said helplessly, gesturing with her head to the closed bathroom door. Fiyero grunted once and advanced again.

"What do you even want? It's not like you seek out your wife." Glinda asked, slightly bitterly, mostly nervous. What was he doing here, why was he not leaving upon seeing that Elphaba was out?

"Wasn't looking for _her_." He spat the word 'her' as if it was the vilest of curses. "I wanted you."

"What could you want to do with me?"

"I want you." Fiyero repeated, staring at her in a way that Glinda had once found exciting, enticing, and yet now some other emotion, much more ominous, pooled in her abdomen. She clutched Illyria even closer to her chest and she moved away from him, closer to the wall and the bathroom door.

"Fiyero, I think you need to leave." She tried to hold her voice steady, but she didn't have the strength of Elphaba. "You're drunk."

""M not drunk." He protested, seemingly unaware of what he was saying.  
>"Yes, you are, I can smell it from here." Glinda pressed against the wall, her voice still small and shaky.<p>

"'M not drunk." He said, a little louder this time.

Glinda talked over him. "Just… just go home and have a shower and go to sleep and you'll feel loads better. You can even have Elphaba—"

"'M not fucking drunk and I don't want my fucking wife!" He roared suddenly, effectively silencing Glinda. "I told you, I want you."

"Well, I don't want you." She said defiantly, her chin sticking up a little. She prided herself on passing her lie off so easily and so well. She did want him, with all her heart… but not with her body. He was no longer the handsome hero of her dreams. He was just… a man. A man that she had once loved, and loved still.

"Yes you do." He was coning toward her steadily, coming close enough that he could put his hands on either side of her head. Glinda wined and tried to duck under them. He grabbed her arm, tightly, too tightly.  
>"Elphaba!" Glinda cried out, trying to pull her arm out of Fiyero's grasp and hold Illyria safely away from her father. "Elphaba!"<br>the bathroom door flew open, narrowly missing Glinda's face. Fiyero dropped Glinda's arm and turned his attention to his wife, one fist flying out and catching her on her cheekbone. Elphaba dropped, but only for a moment. Glinda screamed out. She had never actually seen Fiyero hit Elphaba- seen the results, the bruises and broken bones, yes- but she had never seen his fist collide with her cheek, nor seen the shock of red blood against Elphaba's green skin.

"Put Illyria to bed, Glinda." It was more of a request. Glinda hurried to obey, and locked the door behind her. She sank against it, one hand pressed over her chest.

* * *

><p>AN: Hey guys. I know that this took way too long to be updated, and the next one probably will be too. I'm sort of trying (and largely failing) to deal with some things going on in my personal life. Thanks for sticking with me.


	14. Chapter 14

**Fourteen**

"Fiyero, listen to me." Elphaba blocked his way to the door with both her body and a glare. "I don't care—"

"Get out of the way, bitch." He tried to shove her out of the way, but something, something inside her had had enough.  
>"You listen to me for once in your sordid life, Fiyero Tiggelar. You listen to your wife!" She pushed him back, using strength from who-knows-where.<p>

She started again, drawing a deep breath. "I don't care when you hit me, or when you put me down. You've done everything you possibly can to me, short of killing me. I just don't care anymore." She pushed him away from the door again. "But if you touch one hair on Glinda's head, you even think about hurting her, and I will poison your wine. Don't try me."

She wasn't crying, but, for the first time in probably her entire life, she felt the tears building up behind her eyes and burning her tear ducts, closing up her throat and chest. When she had come out of the bathroom and seen him standing over Glinda and Illyria, her heart had almost stopped. She had known what he planned to do with, to, Glinda. It was the only thing her ever wanted to do to women. And Illyria. Would he have just thrown her to the side, literally thrown her? Elphaba didn't know, nor did she think she wanted to know. This fear, this fear _for_ others, was a new emotion for Elphaba. It had always been about her, her survival, her desires, her life, her her her.

Fiyero was staring at her, dumbfounded, and Elphaba hoped against hope that he would remember at least some of this. She doubted it, but then again, who knew? There was something, a not-quite-hatred look, in his eyes as he reached for her once again, but Elphaba slapped his hand away, cursing silently as a tear burned down her cheek.

"Just… just leave." She turned away from him, turned into the doorway. For a moment all she could hear was his heavy breathing, his alcohol-laden breath filling the air with uneven gasps. Or was that her own breath, heaving and hitching as she collected her tears in her hands? After a few moments, she felt him move away from her, out into the hall, closing the door behind him. Elphaba raised her head, drying her wet face on her dress sleeve as Glinda slowly opened the nursery door.

"Are you okay?"

Elphaba looked at the blonde, knowing her face was an angry purple.

"I'm fine." It was a bold-faced lie, and they both knew it, but Glinda nodded, her eyes sad and old.

There was yet again a silence that seemed could not be penetrated by words. To do so, it seemed to Glinda, would be sanctimonious and rude, as if she, of all people understood what Elphaba had ever been through. She could not imagine… she didn't want to imagine, and so she turned around and busied herself with examining the wall to which she and Elphaba had been pinned for any damage.

Elphaba, for her part, was grateful that Glinda had not presumed to fill the silence. It was slightly overwhelming to have thrown off that small part of her that had bowed to Fiyero again and again. That part in her that had always thought that maybe, just maybe, he would be able to (if not love her) than treat her like he did all his other women. Even more overwhelming was the realization that she had actually let others into her heart. She did not quite know what to do with the information, yet she felt she had to do something.

"Glinda?" The word was laced with emptiness and hope. "I'm not fine."

Glinda stiffened in her perusal of the wall, but showed no other outward signs of the statement.

"I know, Elphie."

* * *

><p>"Elphaba!" It was Nessa, whom Elphaba had not spoken to since she had told Glinda the truth. "Elphaba, wait!" Elphaba sped up for a few steps, but, at the pathetic sound of Nessa's wheelchair squeaking in earnest behind her, she slowed again, her head bowed.<p>

"Elphaba, I'm sorry that I—" Nessa started, but Elphaba interrupted her, whirling on her sister in barely contained anger. Nessa leaned away from Elphaba's eyes, glinting against the green.

"Do you even understand what you did? Do you know why I didn't tell her?"

"I—I thought that Fiyero was just—" the younger girl stammered into silence.

"You thought wrong." Elphaba looked down her nose at the almost trembling girl before her. "Fiyero never 'just' does anything. He is a man of emotion, Nessa."

"But, Elphie, I was only trying to—" Nessa started again.

"Help?" Elphaba let out a short, cruel laugh. "You weren't trying to do anything besides make yourself feel better. Do you want Boq to like you, to marry you?" Her tone turned hasher. "Then stop being a selfish little girl and look around you for once." With one last disgusted look she stalked away, leaving Nessa alone in the middle of the quad.

Elphaba herself was not entirely sure where that burst of energy, of anger had come from. She had rather thought that she had forgiven (but not forgotten, never forgotten) Nessa's starring role in this whole ordeal. But now, when she had come face to face with her younger sister, she had wanted to strangle her, or at least to tip her chair over and leave her lying there.

Breathing deeply, Elphaba vaguely wondered what her life would have been had she not been married to Fiyero. Would she have been a beloved sister? She almost snorted out loud at the thought. No, she thought. She probably would have been little more than a servant, only given a room to herself because none of the servants, nor her family, would want to share a room with the green freak. Yes, that would be the more plausible of the two ways. Would she have even been educated as much as she had, or been left to rot with the rest of the dumb serfs of Munchkinland. If she remembered correctly, Munchkinlanders were taught only the basics of mathematics and reading, and in most cases, taught to write not at all. Yes, there were places of higher learning, but she wasn't even sure if the Western part of Oz had a university or college. She had never heard of one, surely In the Vinkus, there was a single university by the name of Regents College near the palace. Other schools taught depending on who attended them, or where they were located, though most moneyed Vinkuns sent their children to the Emerald City or the Gillikin, where the best and most prestigious schools were located.

With a quick shake of her head, Elphaba brought herself back to the present and slid into a seat in the middle of the lecture hall. It promised to be an interesting discussion about the politics of Ozma the Bilious' reign.

* * *

><p>AN: I'm so so so sorry. I really didn't quite realize how long I had been away. I really have no explanation or excuse, but I am asking you all to forgive me somehow.


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